Virginians bet $236M on sports for April
Virginians bet $236 million on sports during April, the third full month for legal sports wagers in the commonwealth, according to data released Friday by the Virginia Lottery. Bettors made about $217 million between April 1-30. Virginians bet 22% less in April than in March when they wagered heavily on the NCAA Division I men[...]
Va. new jobless claims dip below 10,000
Virginia saw another decrease in initial unemployment claims last week, with 9,843 new claims in the filing week ending May 22, down 799 from the previous week, according to the Virginia Employment Commission‘s Thursday report. Continued claims decreased by 6,250 last week, with 54,163 filed by May 22. This time a year ago[...]
U.S. Sen. John Warner dies at age 94
Former U.S. Sen. John W. Warner III, who died Tuesday at the age of 94 in Alexandria, was remembered Wednesday as a principled, patriotic and bipartisan politician who was one of Virginia’s longest-serving senators and the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The last Republican to hold one of Virginia[...]
Va. Finance Secretary Aubrey Layne to join Sentara
Virginia Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne will join Norfolk-based Sentara Healthcare as the health system’s senior vice president and chief of staff, effective July 1. Layne’s responsibilities will include overseeing Sentara’s legislative affairs and corporate social responsibility teams, as well as the Sentar[...]
Va. April unemployment rate at 4.7%, drops nearly half point
Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was at 4.7% in April, dropping 0.4 percentage points below March’s jobless rate. April’s statewide unemployment rate was 5.9 percentage points below April 2020’s rate of 10.6%, the first full month of pandemic-related job losses. Virginia contends to trend lower than the nation, however. The U.S. unemployment rate for April […][...]
Suffolk names new city manager
Suffolk City Council unanimously agreed to hire Albert Moor as city manager during its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday. Council members appointed Moor to serve as interim city manager in September, following the resignation of Patrick Roberts, who held the post since 2015. Roberts had previously served as deputy city ma[...]
Va. sees second week of slightly lower initial jobless claims
Virginia saw another week of little change in initial unemployment claims, with 10,642 new claims filed during the week ending May 15, the Virginia Employment Commission reported Thursday. This was a decrease of 628 claimants from the previous week. Continued claims last week rose by 2,569 from the previous week, reaching 60,413[...]
Northam orders VEC to hire 300 more claim processors
Gov. Ralph Northam on Tuesday ordered the Virginia Employment Commission to invest $20 million in upgrading its claims system and hire 300 more staffers to process complicated unemployment insurance claims, which have dogged the agency during the COVID-19 pandemic and led to a civil lawsuit. In an executive directive signed Tues[...]
Va. House of Delegates to meet in person at the state Capitol
Virginia House of Delegates Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn announced Monday that the House, when it next convenes, will return in person to the Virginia State Capitol after a year of virtual and physically distanced voting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Over the past year, Virginians have shown commitment and resolve to stop t[...]
Governor ends mask mandate for vaccinated people, effective midnight
Following federal recommendations, Gov. Ralph Northam lifted Virginia’s mask mandate Friday, effective at midnight, for all vaccinated Virginians. He also announced Friday afternoon that all distancing and capacity restrictions will be lifted May 28, two weeks sooner than planned. Masks will still be required at Virginia[...]
Va. officials ‘reviewing’ new CDC mask guidance
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance Thursday that people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 — meaning they received their final shots at least two weeks earlier — can stop wearing masks and maintaining social distance in most indoor and outdoor areas. So, what does that mean for Virginia[...]
Va. sees small decrease in new jobless claims
The fluctuating numbers of initial unemployment claims in Virginia took a break last week, with little change from the previous week, the Virginia Employment Commission reported Thursday. For the filing week ending May 8, 11,270 people submitted new jobless claims, a decrease of 961 claimants from the previous week, or 7.8%. In [...]



















