Episode Notes

The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v Wade. You’ve probably seen maps about what this means on a state-by-state basis. We know that abortion will be legal in places like New England and the West Coast. We know that women in the Deep South will need to travel long distances to receive adequate reproductive health care. And we also know that forced birth advocates in places like Texas are trying to criminalize that kind of travel.

But what about Virginia?

Today on Bold Dominion, we're updating an episode we recorded this spring with Charlotte Woods, reporter at Charlottesville Tomorrow, and Tannis Fuller, Executive Director of the Blue Ridge Abortion Fund.

Episode Notes

Business news media company CNBC does annual rankings of the best state for business. And Virginia has come out on top as the Best State for Business two years in a row. ``` On this episode of Bold Dominion, we explore what this title means, and how ask how it affects working Virginians.

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Today on Bold Dominion, we’re talking with two experts who have been on the ground working to find ways to expand access to healthcare services. Almost half a million Virginians are covered by Medicaid. But the number of uninsured Virginians is expected to increase.

We have many more steps to go to ensure that all Virginians have access to the resources they need to lead flourishing, meaningful lives.

Episode Notes

Today on Bold Dominion, we’re talking with several women about how things could unfold in Virginia after Roe v Wade is overturned. Earlier this month, an anonymous source leaked a draft opinion written by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. It showed that a majority of Justices intend to strike down the landmark 1973 decision that protects the legality of abortion.

Here in Virginia, state law protects the legality of abortion… for now. But laws can change. And Governor Glenn Youngkin and the Republican-majority House of Delegates are showing interest in exactly that. This shift in legal precedent presents new challenges for Virginians. Notes go here

Episode Notes

Virginia is a bona fide trash capital. For decades, Virginia has been the second biggest importer of trash from other states. We even accept trash from other countries. About a quarter of all the trash dumped in Virginia originates from outside the state -- nearly 6 million tons of trash per year.

One state’s trash must be our state’s treasure... at least for the owners. Waste management is a surprisingly profitable enterprise, and Virginia charges no fees for out-of-state trash imports. You can thank the state’s pro-business ideology and some well-placed corporate campaign donations.

So where does that trash land in Virginia? And who does it get dumped on?

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Products made from prison labor are all around us, and you might not even realize it. In fact, state law requires state agencies and public colleges to purchase products made by Virginia Correctional Enterprises. Inmates do get paid, but only 27 - 80 cents per hour.

Defenders of prison labor argue that it provides inmates with vocational skills. Critics of the prison labor system in Virginia and around the country say it’s more akin to modern day slavery.

In this week's episode, a pair of journalists explain how we got today's prison labor system, and some ideas for what should be done about it.

Episode Notes

Back in 2020, Democrats swept into majorities in Virginia's House and Senate. And they passed laws to make voting easier in Virginia. To increase democracy, if you will. But around the country, voting rights are under attack again. Mostly by right-wing groups falsely claiming election fraud and using that as a pretext to limit who can vote.

With Republicans now controlling the Virginia governorship and House of Delegates, what's the state of voting rights in the Commonwealth these days?

Episode Notes

So the General Assembly ended its regular session without agreeing on a state budget. The state has a big surplus, and both Democrats and Republicans want to pass some tax cuts.

You'd think this would be a good thing, an easy thing to resolve. But you would be wrong. There's a gap -- a $2.8 billion gap -- between the Democratic Senate proposal and the Republican House proposal. The General Assembly reconvenes next week to try to hash all this out.

So this week, Bold Dominion is stepping back and doing one of our explainer episodes. How does the sausage get made in Virginia? Who actually crafts state budgets and how do they do it? And what can we expect Virginia's state budget to look like for the next couple years?

Episode Notes

This week marked the end of the 2022 Virginia General Assembly session. Unlike the last two, this session had split party control of state government. So did Virginia lawmakers set partisan politics aside? Did they craft wise legislation to move the Commonwealth forward? Not really. But there was some action, and in this week's episode, the Bold Dominion crew sat down with the guys from Pod Virginia in a special crossover episode. We present this year's General Assembly recap in the form of a game show.

Episode Notes

Virginia's campaign finance laws (or lack thereof) are akin to the Wild West. Lawmakers talk about the so-called Virginia Way, but plenty of them feed from the trough of big donors. Despite decades of reform efforts, campaign finance bills keep dying on the Assembly floor. This year, a proposal would have prohibited lawmakers from using campaign funds for personal expenses. Even that measure failed. Why do we continue to see such little progress in campaign contribution reform?