Activate Virginia

10/23/2026

"Is the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority's private development arm subject to public oversight by citizens and city officials?

Last year, RRHA CEO Steven Nesmith answered that question with an explicit yes. This year, however, he's changed his mind."

On Wednesday, RRHA CEO Steven Nesmith said the Richmond Development Corporation is not subject to public records requests or open meeting requirements, reversing an explicit commitment he made last year.

10/22/2026

"The debate over whether Florida-based NextEra Energy should be allowed to acquire Dominion Energy and create the largest regulated utility in the country heated up Tuesday, with Virginia Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi pledging her opposition to the $67 billion merger."

Lt. Gov. Hashmi is the first elected official at the statewide level to formally oppose the creation of the energy titan between NextEra and Dominion.

10/21/2026

"Flock cameras, the automated license plate readers (ALPRs), have faced intense backlash in recent months amid stories of abuse. Yet privacy experts say they're just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to police surveillance.

"I have been watching the debate about Flock with a little bit of puzzlement," says Andrew Guthrie Ferguson, a law professor at George Washington University. "Because real-time crime centers have not just ALPR cameras and sensors, but video analytics and drones and essentially a way to create a visual single-pane-of-glass vision of what's going on in a city, with time machine capabilities where you can go back and investigate crime.""

Real-time crime-center software is a sometimes overlooked but powerful tool allowing police to aggregate immense amounts of data, significantly expanding their surveillance reach.

10/20/2026

"Elected local government officials would no longer be allowed to sign agreements to keep what they're doing secret when carrying out their official duties under a bill sponsored by state Sen. Mike Jones, D-Richmond.

The bill says such nondisclosure agreements are against public policy and that nondisclosure agreements reached after July 1, 2027, would be void and unenforceable.

"Transparency, fairness and accountability are essential to good government," said Jones, who was a member of Richmond’s city council for seven years before his election to the House of Delegates in 2023 and to the state Senate in a special election this year."

Elected local government officials would no longer be allowed to sign agreements to keep what they're doing secret under sweeping new language in a bill sponsored by state Sen. Mike Jones, D-Richmond.

10/20/2026

"The Western Virginia Regional Industrial Authority, which is selling land in Roanoke County for a data center, announced earlier this week that it pulled out of a nondisclosure agreement with the buyer.

The authority’s initial statement did not answer why it chose to do so.

Asked that question by Cardinal News on Wednesday, the authority released another statement saying “communities across Virginia have raised concerns about transparency on data center projects, and the Authority wants to respond to those concerns.”"

“Ethical obligations” remain to protect information, including the name of the buyer’s corporate parent, its director said.

10/19/2026

"An outing for Virginia lawmakers at Fenway Park in Boston lays bare a system that allows lobbyists to entertain state lawmakers without naming names."

An outing for Virginia lawmakers at Fenway Park in Boston lays bare a system that allows lobbyists to entertain state lawmakers without naming names.

10/19/2026

"The donation, which advocates called “problematic” and “convenient” for the company, comes to light as federal regulators chosen by President Donald Trump consider a NextEra-Dominion merger."

The donation, which advocates called “problematic” and “convenient” for the company, comes to light as federal regulators chosen by President Donald Trump consider whether to allow NextEra to merge with Dominion Energy.

10/19/2026

Documents released by the Virginia Dept. of Elections reveal the termination of the key vendor contracted to design and implement the system.

10/16/2026

"A Chesterfield County Police Department employee has been arrested for misusing the county’s Automatic License Plate Reader System contracted through Flock Safety — which has made headlines throughout 2026 following privacy concerns and questions over the security of its data."

A police department spokesperson said they wouldn’t discuss an ongoing case.