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Virginia Employment Commission closes HQ due to COVID-19
The Virginia Employment Commission is temporarily closing its Richmond headquarters office after the fourth VEC employee in three months has tested positive for COVID-19, the VEC announced Tuesday. The closure affects 350 employees who work out of the Richmond office. VEC call centers and district offices have not been affected and will continue to process […]
Community colleges, businesses partner to get Virginians back to work
The Virginia Ready Initiative (VA Ready) announced Monday a program that will provide stipends for unemployed Virginians to attend community college programs in an effort to find new industry jobs and overcome coronavirus-related economic hardships. “We have people who need work and companies who need employees, so Virginia’s community colleges and employers are coming together [&helli[...]
New state program to provide rent, mortgage relief
Gov. Ralph Northam announced Monday the launch of a $50 million state program to provide relief for people facing eviction or foreclosure due to the pandemic. Federal funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is being directed to the Virginia Rent and Mortgage Relief Program (RMRP). “Expanding access to safe, affordable […]
Phase Three reopening starts July 1
Virginia will enter Phase Three of the state’s Forward Virginia reopening plan on Wednesday, July 1, ending restrictions on restaurants, retail stores and bars, among other changes, Gov. Ralph Northam said Tuesday. “This gives us about three-and-a-half weeks of Phase Two where we have been able to follow the data,” Northam said during his Tuesday […]
State directs nearly $250M to long-term care facilities for COVID-19
Because a majority of COVID-19 outbreaks in Virginia have occurred in long-term care facilities, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Friday that the state will direct nearly $250 million to these facilities for coronavirus response, with most of the funding coming from federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding. Northam has also directed the […]
State offering relief grants to destination marketing organizations
A new state relief program, the WanderLOVE Recovery Grant Program, will provide up to 50 grants of up to $10,000 apiece to destination marketing organizations (DMOs) across the commonwealth that have been heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday. The program, which is being administered by the Virginia Tourism Corp., began […]
386K+ remain unemployed in Va. during pandemic
UPDATED 4 P.M. FRIDAY | More than 386,000 Virginians are still unemployed following the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, though the number of initial jobless claims across the commonwealth continues to decrease. The Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) announced Thursday that 849,486 initial unemployment claims have been filed since March 15. Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unempl[...]
Virginia gets new digits
On Wednesday, the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) announced that the North American Numbering Plan Administrator has assigned a new area code, 826, to relieve future exhaustion of the 540 area code, which is expected to occur in 2022. Residents and businesses in the affected region will not lose their existing 540 phone numbers under […]
$2.48M in state research grants awarded to tech firms, universities
Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday that $2.48 million in grant funding from the Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) will be dispersed among small technology businesses and universities to be used to commercialize research in sectors including clean energy, cybersecurity, data analytics, life sciences and unmanned systems. “These entrepreneurs and innovators are on the front l[...]
Virginia places 20-day moratorium on evictions
With almost 400,000 Virginians still unemployed due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic fallout, Gov. Ralph Northam has announced a temporary statewide moratorium on eviction proceedings in the commonwealth, to remain in effect through June 28. Granted by an order from Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald Lemons, the moratorium will pause evictions will the Northam […]
$2.2 billion in federal funding headed to state agencies
Next week, Virginia officials will allocate about $2.2 billion in federal stimulus funds to state agencies, which are sending requests to the governor’s office through Monday, Virginia Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne announced Friday. So far, of the $3.1 billion in federal funds from the CARES Act given to Virginia, $650 million has been allocated […]
State tax collection revenue fell 26.2% in April
State revenue from tax collections fell 26.2% in April, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday. This is primarily due to tax deadline extensions for individual and corporate income taxes, which were extended until June 1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “April tax receipts are consistent with our estimate of a $1 billion reduction in the fourth […]
