Kiggans are Luria are set to debate this morning
Watch the livestream of the debate set to begin at 11 am.
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Coming at Noon:
New poll numbers on Governor Youngkin’s and President Biden’s approval ratings, abortion, inflation, and other important topics ahead of midterm elections in Virginia.
Paid subscribers will see the results first at 12 pm today.
At 11 am, Kiggans and Luria will debate in VA-02
According to the Associated Press:
“Luria and Kiggans will debate a range of issues important to the region, including infrastructure and military affairs, according to the Hampton Roads Chamber, which organized the event.
“The debate runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and TV station WTKR will livestream it, according to the chamber. Chris Saxman, a former Republican member of the House of Delegates, will moderate.”
Executive Schedule
9:30 AM: GOVERNOR GLENN YOUNGKIN DELIVERS REMARKS AT THE JOINT ADVISORY BOARD OF ECONOMISTS
10:30AM: GOVERNOR DELIVERS REMARKS, TOURS AND PARTICIPATES IN RIBBON CUTTING AT THERMO FISHER SCIENTIFIC
12:45 PM: GOVERNOR RECEIVES BRIEFING FROM SECRETARY OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND HOMELAND SECURITY ROBERT MOSIER
6:00PM: GOVERNOR RECEIVES BRIEFING FROM SECRETARY OF EDUCATION AIMEE GUIDERA
Newport News delegate plans to reintroduce bill to help tenants facing eviction
By Chloe Voss
Capital News Service
RICHMOND, Va. – Amid rising evictions in Virginia, a state legislator plans to reintroduce an expired public health emergency law which could help tenants pay their rent, although invested parties debate its efficacy.
Tenants, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, had a five-day period to get up to date on unpaid rent or vacate the property without having the case go to court. This stretch is known as the pay or quit period. Former Gov. Ralph Northam introduced the lengthened 14-day period alongside other special laws during a declared state of emergency in 2021. The provision expired June 30.
The number of eviction judgments began increasing this year. An eviction judgment is the official judgment made by the courts dictating whether a tenant is in violation of their lease for nonpayment of rent or any other lease breaking infraction. An eviction judgment is different from an eviction filing. The eviction filing is the official complaint made by the landlord stating the reason for the eviction. The filing is simply the first step in the legal process and will not necessarily lead to a tenant vacating the property. The RVA Eviction Lab, which operates from the Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, tracks these numbers. Its focus is meeting eviction data and research needs to help drive policy and advocacy.
There was an estimated 60% increase in eviction judgments in the second quarter of the year, from April to June, according to data from Benjamin Teresa, co-director of the RVA Eviction Lab and an associate professor at VCU. Approximately 7,800 judgments were issued in the second quarter, Teresa stated. That is compared to 4,864 in the first quarter, or January through March, according to Teresa. The higher numbers track with the expiration of emergency provisions.
Del. Cia Price, D-Newport News, plans to reintroduce a bill to lengthen the pay or quit period to 14 days versus the current five days. She sponsored House Bill 803 earlier in the year to cement the lengthened pay or quit period put in place in 2021. The bill died in committee along a party line vote, despite landlord and tenant support in her district, Price said.
The original timeline is not enough, considering a standard pay period is 14 days, Price said.
“The five days in the five-day pay or quit was completely arbitrary,” Price said. “That 14 days helped you get to the next check.”
Most people will receive a paycheck during the lengthened notice period, instead of approximately 35% who receive a paycheck during a five-day period, stated Martin Wegbreit, director of litigation at the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society, in an email.
Wegbreit represents tenants facing eviction in court and says an extension would help many people stay secure in their housing.
“Quantifying how many more tenants will be able to pay with a longer notice period is not easy to calculate, but certainly it is a significant number,” Wegbreit stated.
The extended pay or quit notice was not the only provision put in place to help those facing eviction, but it did not require extra funding and it was pushed to become permanent by legislators.
Christine E. Marra is the director of housing advocacy at the Virginia Poverty Law Center. The rise in evictions is not a surprise as the special laws and funding made available during the pandemic have ended, she said.
“We are finished with the protections and that is the reason why you are seeing this huge spike in eviction cases,” Marra said.
Some experts do not think permanently extending the pay or quit period would make a meaningful difference to tenants.
The additional nine days only matters to the courts, said Tommy Herbert, manager of government affairs at the Virginia Apartment Management Association. The length of the pay or quit period only affects the timeline of the preliminary court hearing, not the actual eviction, according to Herbert, because of the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant’s Act passed in February 2021.
That act, also sponsored by Price, established the tenant’s unlimited “right of redemption.” This means tenants can pay back everything due to their landlord up to 48 hours before the scheduled eviction, and can do that as many times needed during their lease.
“In Virginia, given that the unlimited right of redemption exists for such a long period, the actual [eviction] filing timeline becomes immaterial,” Herbert said.
The typical time it takes to complete an eviction is anywhere from 30 to 45 days, depending on the Virginia locality, according to Virginia Apartment Management Association CEO Patrick McCloud.
McCloud agreed that the unlimited right of redemption made the 14-day pay or quit extension pointless.
“The redemption is there so the process can start moving, but someone can still be secure in their housing,” McCloud said.
However, not all tenants will want to face a proceeding that involves the court for mediation.
The best way to bring down evictions and eviction filings is to get tenants up to date on their payments, Herbert said.
“Rent relief and bringing a tenant current is a great way to prevent an eviction filing from ever happening,” Herbert said.
Rent relief requires funding, which has mostly dried up. The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development closed its applications for state-wide relief funding on May 15, leaving only local programs available which can be found through the Virginia Department of Social Services by dialing “211 VIRGINIA.”
Educating tenants on their rights can greatly increase their protection in eviction cases, according to advocates at the Virginia Poverty Law Center. Advocates recommend to show up to court dates to avoid hasty default judgments and see if there are any local rental relief programs available. Tenants facing eviction can get free legal advice available through the Legal Aid Justice Center and the Virginia Poverty Law Center.
Capital News Service is a program of Virginia Commonwealth University's Robertson School of Media and Culture. Students in the program provide state government coverage for a variety of media outlets in Virginia.
Spanberger received the NSL4a endorsement
Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s (D) campaign announced Wednesday that she is being backed by National Security Leaders for America (NSL4A) – a consortium of more than 200 Veterans, diplomats, and national security leaders. SPanberger is running against Yesli Vega (R) for reelection in VA-07.
Key signatories of the letter include Gov. Janet Napolitano, former Secretary of Homeland Security, Richard J. Danzig, former Secretary of the Navy, Amb. Ray Mabus, former Secretary of the Navy, Amb. Bruce Heyman. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a former Director of the National Security Council, and Richard A. Clarke, former Special Advisor to the President.
“During her first four years in Congress, Abigail has proven herself to be a champion of voting rights, an advocate for her constituents regardless of political persuasion, and a staunch supporter of democratic ideals,” the group wrote. “She fervently believes the United States should positively engage the world community through diplomatic and economic channels, and she supports a robust national defense that supports such democratic ideals.”
Click here to read the full endorsement and the full list of signatories.
After praising police work on July Fourth tip, Richmond chief blocked lead detective from prestigious post - Richmond Times-Dispatch
by Patrick Wilson and Chris Suarez
According to an Aug. 19 letter the newspaper obtained through the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, a police supervisor signed the letter to Stanley Meador, the special agent in charge of the Richmond FBI office.
“The Richmond Police Department is aware of and approves Detective Michael Kiniry’s participation on the FBI RAVE task force,” the letter said.
Behind the scenes, though, Smith on Sept. 2 blocked Kiniry from joining the task force, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because of concerns about potential retaliation. It happened while the chief continued to face scrutiny for claiming that police had foiled a planned mass shooting without any corroborating evidence that they had.
Attorney General Miyares Hosts LEO Breakfast in Norton, Tours Local Businesses in Bristol on Thursday
Attorney General Miyares, Governor Allen and Attorney General Kilgore will be attending a law enforcement officer appreciation breakfast in Norton Thursday, October 13th.
In the afternoon, Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti will join them in Bristol to tour State Street businesses. The group will be discussing economic development, entrepreneurship and supporting local businesses.
Event Details for Thursday, October 13th
LEO Appreciation Breakfast
8:30AM at the Shriners Club in Norton
Attorney General Miyares and Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti Tour State Street Businesses
3:30PM at State Street Brewing in Bristol
A Roanoke lawyer is calling for renaming the city’s federal courthouse - Roanoke Times
by Laurence hammock
A prominent lawyer is calling for changing the name of Roanoke’s federal courthouse, which commemorates the late Richard H. Poff, a U.S. Congressman who once supported segregation.
The building should be renamed in honor of Reuben E. Lawson, a civil rights attorney who fought for the very racial integration of schools that was opposed by Poff in the 1950s and 1960s, Roanoke attorney John Fishwick said.
Why Virginia gas prices have jumped 20-cents in a week - WTVR
By: Elizabeth Holmes
If you drove by a gas station this week in Virginia and did a double take, you're not the only one. The average gas price in Virginia is $3.53 per gallon, up four cents overnight and 22 cents in a week, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The average gas price in Richmond is $3.50 per gallon, up four cents overnight and 29 cents in a week. The national average sits at around $3.92 per gallon.
