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One area in the Commonwealth that needs extra attention insofar as state funding is concerned is public education infrastructure. Virginia has funded K-12 public education through the state lottery system, which has brought in around $9 billion, with record profits topping $600 million in 2018. If the General Assembly repeals Virginia’s existing ban on casino gambling, a potentially large coffer could be opened to fund not only higher education or K-12 education, but other areas that need vital funding – transportation infrastructure, combating the opioid epidemic, school safety measures, countering human trafficking, creating a larger law enforcement presence towards gang violence, more affordable healthcare, among many others. 

In December 1619, 38 English settlers traveled up the James River through its many tributaries and landed at “Berkeley Hundred,” an 8,000-acre swath of farmland, ending the treacherous trip in remembrance and prayer, establishing the first Thanksgiving in Virginia.

Governor Ralph Northam said recently that he wants to target “spiraling healthcare costs,” as Medicaid expansion went into effect earlier this year. Interestingly, he mentioned that Senate Bill 964, introduced by State Senator Glen Sturtevant (R-Richmond), a bill the governor vetoed in May, is “certainly something we can put on the table,” going against the Democratic agenda.

The rise in cost follows increases in previous years as additional revenue is needed to finance the construction of the second phase of the Metro rail system’s Silver Line that will extend to Ashburn, going through Dulles International Airport. 

The legislation that may be coming in 2019 follows a study created by a General Assembly subcommittee to investigate election laws and reform that could be made to make Virginia elections run more smoothly, add transparency, and maximize voter participation.