On January 1, 2027, only the five existing pharmaceutical processors, who already have flower curing in their vaults, could possibly be ready. Every independent cultivator licensed under the new framework will have barely broken ground.
Opinion
Legislators ponder a different way to tax data centers. Should that new way also be based on a locality’s economic status?
The proposal, which Gov. Abigail Spanberger recently talked about, is to tax data centers based on how much electricity they use. Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick County, says this should be a tiered system with lower tax rates in rural areas to encourage data centers to locate in rural areas that want them.
Health care consultant: A new way to look at health care affordability in Virginia
How do we know when spending growth in hospitals is a sign of progress or profiteering? The team at the Yale Health Care Affordability Lab may have found a way to distinguish good mergers from bad ones, and it could help Virginians trying to make health care more affordable.
Report says 35% of the jobs in Virginia may be at risk to artificial intelligence. Southside the least impacted, Northern Virginia the most.
The report, commissioned by the Virginia Chamber Foundation, identifies which jobs are most at risk and which ones are immune.
Democrat from Lee County: Virginia voters should protect our voice in Washington and vote ‘yes’
President Donald Trump and MAGA Republican leaders have openly urged states like Texas, North Carolina and soon Florida to change the rules ahead of the 2026 midterms in order to lock in more Republican seats before voters even cast their ballots. It’s an effort to tilt the playing field in Washington before the election ever begins and to give Virginia voters less of a say in what happens next.
Republican from Suffolk: Protect Virginia’s redistricting commission. Vote ‘no’ on April 21.
When either party redraws maps solely to entrench political advantage, it undermines public trust. The Republican Party was wrong for setting this in motion and must take ownership of that misguided act at the same time. What is being proposed here by the Democrats is wrong, too.
Current congressional map follows mountains. The proposed one doesn’t. Should that matter?
Before we discard the current congressional map, let’s take a look at how it was drawn, an exercise that takes us to the question of “what constitutes a community of interest?”
Researcher: Addressing runaway college sports spending in Virginia
This whole college sports enterprise is business development that is being financed by student subsidies, and frequently ever higher student loan debt. As a society, do we do this for any other form of business development?
Roanoke’s Berglund Center was built for the entertainment landscape of 1971. That world doesn’t exist today.
The lack of big shows or big games is not a failure of management or marketing, it’s simply a fundamental change in the entertainment market. Roanoke needs to keep that in mind as it contemplates an “entertainment district.”
Prisoner’s sister: Hostage diplomacy is real. My brother is living proof.
The sister of a former Salem man who is being held in Russia after being abducted in international waters asks for others to speak up on her brother’s behalf.

