WMRA Daily

We've had rain, so why is there still extreme drought in our area?... A former Waynesboro cop is sentenced to jail for assaulting a fellow officer with a Taser… Crime, including violent offenses, is down across Virginia, according to State Police….

A hospital in Bath County is at risk of closure… Dominion Energy and NextEra filed applications to merge…Drought conditions persist across Virginia… and Radio IQ's Michael Pope and Politics analyst Jeff Schapiro recap the week in politics and state government…

Harrisonburg City Council announced plans to remove Flock cameras from the city…Virginia State Police have released their crime statistics for 2025… A state judge struck down a challenge to a proposed amendment for reproductive rights…And a Harrisonburg line dancing club has seen an uptick in younger attendees in recent years…

Extreme temperatures in Virginia have impacted grape crops at vineyards…A drought watch has been declared for Charlottesville and Albemarle County… Smoking appears to be making a comeback with Gen Z…And we'll meet some of the world's last Guam Kingfishers that are part of a conservation project in Front Royal...

A Bridgewater College political scientist will give a talk about authoritarianism... New gun laws passed by the General Assembly are facing legal battles... Congressman John McGuire will face one of three Democrats in the race for Virginia's 5th District... and a Grammy-wining Richmond Jazz drummer has been named as the artistic director for the Newport Jazz Festival...

Charlottesville residents choose the new design for a public art project using melted down bronze from the former Robert E. Lee monument… JMU says full speed ahead on expansions for Bridgeforth Stadium and student housing… Gas prices in Virginia, and nationwide, are climbing again amid renewed fighting in the Middle East….

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….

Farmville asks residents to conserve water… After a six-year hiatus, Charlottesville City will again deploy School Resource Officers to public schools… Shenandoah University gets a grant to create a shared commercial kitchen for the Winchester area….

Cooling centers open around the region as we head into an Independence Day weekend of extreme heat… The Free Clinic of Culpeper launches a new peer recovery program… We pay a visit to the Front Royal campus of the Smithsonian Institute, where rescuing black-footed ferrets has become a success story….

State health officials warn of dangerous heat this July 4th weekend… WMRA's Calvin Pynn explores the phenomenon of “flash droughts”… A federal judge blocks a new Virginia law that prevents ICE officers from wearing masks….

The measles outbreak in Buckingham County spreads to neighboring Cumberland… A Virginia program called SUN Bucks helps feed children when school is out of session, and some farmers markets are participating... Staunton residents with Valley Supportive Housing help alleviate housing instability there….

ICE confirms arrests in the Ruckersville area, just days before restrictions on cooperation with local law enforcement go into effect… It's official, Virginia has a budget, just before today's deadline… We dig into the popularity (and health risks) of raw milk….

As potentially dangerous, triple-digit heat looms later this week, Rockingham and Augusta counties declare drought emergencies… Fewer Virginians sign up for health insurance using the state's health exchange, with the end of federal subsidies and higher premiums to blame… On July 1st, Virginia's unemployment benefits increase, and Styrofoam begins to go away….

Areas east of the Blue Ridge are still under extreme drought, but weekend rain could help… As Virginia's budget debate moves toward a resolution just before the deadline, Jeff Schapiro shares his perspective on Virginia politics… We take a ride through American history on the Norfolk & Southern 611 steam train….

Page County deputies shoot and kill a woman after a welfare checkup… For the first time, EMU names a Black woman as president… Jim Ryan reflects on life one year after resigning as UVa's president….

Shenandoah County leaders move forward on new rules for data centers… In the second part of our series on the rebuilding of Nelson County's Department of Social Services, we investigate the staffing challenges faced by small rural agencies… We meet the all-volunteer crew in Mount Solon that rehabilitates injured bats and teaches the public how to protect them….

Nelson County's Department of Social Services is rebuilding after a year of turmoil… The General Assembly approves a new budget, just over a week before the deadline… We take a deeper look at the compromise in that budget over a legal marijuana marketplace….

The Virginia House and State Senate meet today to vote on Virginia's next two-year budget… Virginia remains in a near-statewide drought warning… Residents in Chesterfield county push back on plans for three new data centers.

Researchers from the University of Virginia have found a possible negative side effect of weight loss injection drugs on muscle mass ... Mary Page Marlowe tells the story of a woman's life over the course of several decades, complicated by her personal choices and circumstances. The play, produced by local theater company ShenanArts, debuts in Staunton tomorrow ... and more.

Shenandoah National Park officials suspect a norovirus outbreak along the Appalachian Trail is infecting some hikers… The case against the Natural Bridge Zoo will be split into three separate trials… A Fluvanna County woman invents a wearable device to help breast-feeding mothers....

Residents pack a public forum in Strasburg over a proposed data center complex… The two missing baby giraffes from the Natural Bridge Zoo have been found safe… Governor Spanberger and legislative leaders announce a deal on a retail marijuana market….

Residents in several places in the northern Shenandoah Valley are debating proposed data center projects… Morale in Albemarle County's police department is down, according to one survey… Old-fashioned pinball and video games are thriving at parlors around the state, and we visit one in Charlottesville….

Health officials ask residents in Buckingham County to help contain the measles outbreak there… Drought conditions worsen, with nearly 40% of Virginia under extreme drought… The House of Delegates releases its budget proposal, which still includes a tax break for data centers, but also a commission to study them….

Albemarle County's school superintendent resigns over his handling of accusations against two teachers…Harrisonburg hosts a new Pride-themed vendor market… We meet a cyclist traveling the East Coast to raise money for LGBTQ+ causes… Jeff Schapiro surveys the week in Virginia politics, and looks ahead to upcoming budget negotiations….

Virginia notches more than 100 measles cases, largely due to an outbreak in Buckingham County… Prosecutors in Page County and elsewhere vow not to enforce a new ban on so-called “assault weapons”… The war in Iran, and the resulting shortages and rise in prices, presents new challenges for local farmers….

UVa researchers launch a program to discourage the consumption of sugary drinks… A court orders registrars to accept student voter applications from JMU and other state campuses… Governor Spanberger appoints dozens of new members to governing boards at Virginia's colleges and universities….

Shenandoah County takes one step closer to welcoming a data center, despite the opposition of some residents… Due to federal budget cuts, Bath Community Hospital is among more than a dozen rural hospitals in Virginia in danger of closing… We explore the growing trend of IV infusions to boost energy, and the risks….

Dominion representatives skip a state meeting on offshore wind, even as the company hopes for state approval for a big merger… Could the war in Iran be a good thing for jobs in Virginia?... A free fishing program is expanded across the state….

Measles, mostly among the unvaccinated, continues to spread in Virginia… A late freeze, drought and war mean lower crop yields this season for farmers in the Shenandoah Valley… Nexus again violates court orders… The Staunton community works to revive a historic downtown theater….

At an appearance in Virginia amid a measles outbreak, Health Secretary RFK, Jr. encourages people to get vaccinated… One man is in prison for killing Towan Cappell in 2022, but did others escape justice because of Harrisonburg Police incompetence?... We go on a quest through the forest for turtles….

The lead investigator on a 2022 Harrisonburg murder scene had never worked a violent crime before (part two in our series on the case of the killing of Towan Cappell)… Experts say with gas prices momentarily falling, now is the time to fill your tank… A new report paints a much rosier picture for Virginia state revenues over the next few years….

Police mishandling of a 2022 murder in Harrisonburg means those who may have been involved have not faced justice… As the June 30th deadline for the budget approaches, leaders in the General Assembly battle each other and the governor for leverage… We talk with local hemp businesses about how they process the crop, and the regulatory challenges they face….

Park rangers launch sobriety checkpoints for Skyline Drive visitors… Even with last month's heavy rain, much of our area is still under extreme drought… A court ends a lawsuit against the state corrections department over alleged abuses at Fluvanna Correctional Center, but how are conditions there now?

A June date is set for the General Assembly to reconvene and finalize the state's budget, with a deadline looming at the end of the month… Jeff Schapiro lends his insight on that and more in the week in Virginia politics… Two nonprofits team up to save Virginia's farmland from development….

The 5th congressional district is the only one with primary elections for both major parties this year… A new forecast suggests Virginia's economy is heading for a rough patch… An independent record label that got its start in Charlottesville reissues a 30th anniversary series, and we take a listen….

Residents and supporters of Harrisonburg's Northeast neighborhood gather to protest police treatment of three teens as suspects after a shooting… Governor Spanberger's veto totals approach those of her predecessor in his first year in office… Federal government pressure influenced the lack of limits on AI in this year's General Assembly….

Charlottesvile City Council is noncommittal on placing new public art crafted using melted bronze from the old Lee statue… Meanwhile, the city marks the 50th anniversary of its downtown mall… Virginia state health agencies raise awareness about postpartum depression….

The so-called Shopping Cart Killer will serve life in prison for his crimes… We continue to explore some of the flurry of vetoes Governor Spanberger issued last week… President Trump considers a health care bill introduced by the late Virginia Representative Gerry Connolly….

This weekend's rain will help, but drought conditions have worsened in Virginia… Childhood vaccination gaps contribute to a measles outbreak in Buckingham County… How are Virginians who got “DOGE'd” a year ago doing now?

The town of Broadway becomes the third in the Valley to stop fluoridating its drinking water… Democrat Ken Mitchell suspends his campaign for Congress, and throws his support behind Beth Macy in the 6th district… Virginia state revenues exceed expectations, but there are warning signs ahead for Virginia's economy….

Governor Spanberger's veto pen is busy, rejecting next year's state cannabis market and the latest effort to curb drug prices… Augusta County authorities step up the search for a man missing since early March… Union members urge a General Assembly committee to keep the tax breaks for data centers in the budget….

Dominion Energy will merge with a Florida company to become the largest regulated electric utility in the country… Shenandoah River water levels are near historic lows, as severe drought continues… Advocates kick off a campaign to educate voters about a reproductive health care amendment on the ballot this November….

The U.S. Supreme Court ends Virginia's mid-decade redistricting effort… Gun rights groups file legal challenges to the state's new ban on assault-style weapons… At UVa's commencement, former president Jim Ryan is the keynote speaker….

The state's health department declares a measles outbreak in Buckingham County… Governor Spanberger vetoes legislation that would have expanded collective bargaining rights for public employees… That's a blow to labor groups that supported her campaign, and Jeff Shapiro discusses that and more in the week in Virginia politics….

Police in Augusta County investigate bomb threats at a high school and at Augusta Health… In Charlottesville, Governor Spanberger signs legislation banning firearms on public college and university campuses… Meanwhile, the governor says she will veto a bill that would allow state and local employees to collectively bargain….

Fuel prices are up around 50% in the WMRA region since the war on Iran began… Changes are coming to regulations of electronic cigarettes… We revisit a Revolutionary War-era P.O.W. camp in Albemarle County….

Severe drought now covers more than 80 percent of Virginia… The Golden Pony, a popular music and food venue in Harrisonburg, will close next month… Virginia's attorney general appeals the defeat of Virginia's redistricting referendum to the U.S. Supreme Court….

Virginia Democrats ask the state Supreme Court to hold off on implementing its ruling against the redistricting referendum, and say they will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court… Virginia's health department confirms a case of measles in a child in the central health region… More students in Virginia gain access to free breakfast and lunch at school through a federal nutrition program….