WMRA Daily

A local food assistance program loses federal funding, but still has state support… Governor Spanberger announces her long-term energy plan… We continue the story of the community of Newtown, and the restoration of the site of a chemical plant, long gone but not forgotten… Jeff Schapiro surveys the week in Virginia politics….

Legal immigrants in Virginia are among those to be kicked off Medicaid, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act… Albemarle County officials want to auction off the site of a deadly chemical plant explosion in 1985… Black bears face new threats as they hunt for food before the winter….

The third annual Descendants’ Day symposium takes place in Albemarle County… Immigrant advocates protest Richmond International Airport, which has become a stop for federally chartered ICE flights… Virginia’s new passenger rail plan will likely not include high-speed rail….

Augusta County removes its two Flock System cameras… Former 5th District Republican Representative Denver Riggleman endorses Democrat Tom Perriello for the seat… Can a new system for forcing payment of traffic citations in Virginia work without generating mounds of paperwork?

Hundreds of thousands of felons may now vote in Virginia, so what might that mean for the midterms?... Florida animal officials raise questions about the transfer of Asha the elephant from the Natural Bridge Zoo… Could a new state tax on data centers help fund health care access?

Virginia’s roads are getting more dangerous, and state officials want to make them safer… An organization in Charlottesville helps turn student innovations into products that can improve health… Jeff Schapiro surveys the week in Virginia politics….

RAM’s free clinic returns to Luray… Dominion and Appalachian Power receive failing grades from an environmental group on renewable energy… Virginia voters are being asked whether to change the state’s constitution to restore voting rights to felons….

During the hottest days of summer, Farmville’s immigration detention center lost A/C… Gun violence is markedly down in Charlottesville, but the problem persists… A festival that showcases films made by and featuring people who have survived incarceration comes to the Valley….

Visitors to Shenandoah National Park can now use automated entry stations… As part of our Virginia Elections Collaborative, WMRA investigates fundraising for candidates in the 5th and 6th Districts, and at the ballot question on reproductive rights… We also look at Republican claims of noncitizen voting in Virginia….

Farmers in Virginia face the highest diesel prices ever… Governor Spanberger signs a new executive order targeting data centers in Virginia… The state’s attorney general says that the Department of Homeland Security may have violated several state laws….

Early voting in Virginia begins today, and in partnership with the public radio news network around the Commonwealth, WMRA introduces our fall election coverage… Jeff Schapiro surveys the fall election landscape, and this week in Virginia politics … The lieutenant governor brings her listening tour about energy costs to Charlottesville….

Broadway is the latest locality to get rid of Flock cameras… Virginia’s environmental officials hold a final public meeting over pollution permitting for the Northrop Grumman plant in Waynesboro… Governor Spanberger declares a state of emergency over the hay shortage caused by Virginia’s drought conditions….

The Harrisonburg Rotary Club cancels a forum for the 6th District congressional candidates… Waynesboro residents speak out at the final hearing before environmental officials decide on a pollution permit for Northrop Grumman… The University of Virginia is in the top ten nationwide when it comes to free speech on campus….

Dozens of residents protest against Northrop Grumman at Waynesboro’s city council meeting… Support for bringing passenger trains to the Shenandoah Valley grows in Harrisonburg… One Charlottesville breast cancer survivor is building a better surgical recovery bra….

Shenandoah County’s school board takes the next step to budget for court costs as it appeals a ruling against Confederate school names… Activities at Westwood Elementary in Waynesboro resume this week, and classes will restart on Thursday, two weeks after a gunman shot his way into the school… We pay a visit to a mobile food pantry in Scottsville….

Augusta County wants the FCC to block Verizon from discontinuing landline service… Waynesboro residents speak out against allowing Northrop Grumman’s new plant to pollute… Early voting in Virginia starts next Friday, and Jeff Schapiro surveys the political landscape, and takes a look back at political reaction to 9/11….

Bridgewater is the latest locality to decide to get rid of its Flock cameras… Conservation groups want to stop the widening of a West Virginia highway near the Virginia border… Preservation Virginia lists historic places in our area that are endangered… We talk with the creators behind a new play at Court Square Theater that chronicles an improv comedy duo….

We check in on Charlottesville’s newly opened homeless shelter… Buena Vista holds its 55th annual Labor Day political festival… A McGaheysville mom builds an online village to support other new moms….

UVa employees march for a living wage on Labor Day… A Waynesboro man is found dead in his car, submerged in a Nelson County lake… Democrats blast President Trump and celebrate Beth Macy’s candidacy at a fundraiser in Harrisonburg….

A suspected arsonist sets fire to tents at a former homeless encampment in Charlottesville… Virginians are sour on the economy, and consumer sentiment is down… As demand has surged, there is now a shortage of estrogen patches for patients who need them….

UVA is holding an essay contest for local students to imagine the U-S in 250 years... The group building out the Winchester Co-Op Market hosts a community picnic... We'll hear from organizers of the Virginia Film Festival about a new award honoring producers... A proposed constitutional amendment could allow people in Virginia convicted of a felony to keep their right to vote... and Radio IQ's Mic...

Immigration advocates and faith leaders in Staunton rally support for a youth being forced out of the country, away from his family, by immigration enforcement… Public surveys show solid support for a trail-only option for the proposed project between Broadway and Front Royal… Senator Tim Kaine tours the Moton Museum in Farmville, and Jeff Schapiro surveys the week in Virginia politics….

We have the latest on a Staunton man detained by ICE, now back home with his family… New state funding lowers health insurance premiums for about 200,000 Virginians enrolled in the state’s marketplace… Adoption in Virginia gets a big boost from a private non-profit….

Senator Tim Kaine starts a tour of the Shenandoah Valley with a stop at a health clinic in Winchester… A Louisa County music teacher is the new president of the National Education Association… Virginia’s new law against law enforcement officers wearing masks may not survive in court….

A state Supreme Court panel denies the attorney general’s effort to combine separate lawsuits against the state’s assault weapons ban… Artificial intelligence is not very good at illustrating small towns… During its annual Fourth of July yard sale, the small community of Fulks Run reflects on America’s 250th birthday….