Gov. Abigail Spanberger told the General Assembly's Joint Money Committees on Wednesday that general fund revenues climbed $2.1 billion in fiscal year 2026 — nearly $939 million above the official forecast — but paired the good news with a warning that Virginia lost about 43,600 jobs, mostly in the federal government and professional services. Her caution is the whole story: more than 300,000 Virginians on Medicaid risk losing coverage under the federal One Big Beautiful Bill, and Spanberger said flatly that "state funds simply cannot make up the gap the federal government is leaving us." Her stated budget priorities — holding data centers accountable, plus healthcare, energy, and housing costs — set the terms for negotiations when the Assembly reconvenes from recess. Watch whether legislators treat the surplus as a cushion against federal cuts or a spending opportunity; that fight defines the next session.

At the same Wednesday address, Spanberger disclosed the price tag on a failed Department of Social Services project to modernize the state's aging child-support enforcement system: $52 million, spent before the two-year effort known as APECS was shut down. VPM News first reported the shutdown in June, but Wednesday was the first time the full cost was confirmed publicly under the new administration. For the Virginia families who depend on child-support enforcement, the outdated system stays in place — and $52 million is gone with nothing to show for it. Expect legislators to demand accountability on procurement oversight when budget hearings resume.

Chesterfield County police arrested 19-year-old Ja'niah Johnson of Glen Burnie, Maryland — a Virginia State University student — for allegedly helping shooting suspect Camron Harris hide in her dormitory closet for 14 hours after the weekend mass shooting that injured five people. Harris, also 19, was arrested August 15 and faces four counts of malicious wounding and four counts of use of a firearm in a felony; he is held without bond. Johnson was released on her own recognizance and is scheduled for arraignment August 25. Police say the investigation remains open and additional suspects have not been ruled out — meaning the roster of charges in this case may not be final.

Newly surfaced court documents show Camron Harris discussed the shooting in Instagram messages before the early-morning attack near VSU's Quad Annexes, including one reading "I'm tryna find the gun," according to the filings. The shooting allegedly grew out of an argument involving Harris and left a 21-year-old man critically injured, with four others suffering non-life-threatening wounds. Classes at the historically Black university in Ettrick resumed Monday, but campus safety and the search for anyone else involved remain live concerns for its roughly 5,700 students. The digital trail strengthens the prosecution's premeditation case — watch how it shapes the malicious-wounding charges as the case advances.

In a single day, Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, and Amherst County all moved to rein in data center development — a coordinated-looking wave that shows resistance has spread far beyond Northern Virginia. Chesapeake's council unanimously required conditional use permits, confined projects to industrial zones, banned groundwater use for operations, and set 1,000-foot buffers from homes; Virginia Beach approved a one-year moratorium; and Amherst County voted 3–2 to make every future data center a special-use case requiring a public hearing. Chesapeake's groundwater ban is the precedent to watch — it's the first to treat water stress as a siting dealbreaker. As more localities say no, the pressure concentrates on whichever counties still say yes.

Loudoun County supervisors Juli Briskman and Laura TeKrony announced they'll introduce legislation at the next board meeting to kill the 2025 Data Center Grandfathering Resolution — a move that would drag more than 20 previously exempt applications into full public hearings and board votes. Loudoun already hosts roughly 250 data centers and expects $1.3 billion in related tax revenue, making it the national model for both the fiscal upside and the land-use backlash. Briskman has said the growth "gone way too far." If the board terminates the resolution, those 20-plus projects lose their fast track — and every developer counting on by-right approval statewide takes notice.

A State Corporation Commission commissioner who previously worked as a NextEra attorney has declined to recuse herself from the pending Dominion Energy–NextEra merger review, according to Virginia Mercury. The recusal fight lands as the merger draws scrutiny on multiple fronts: Sen. Creigh Deeds recently questioned whether the SCC could reject the application outright and restart the six-month clock, and VPM News reports concerns the deal could hurt rooftop solar. This matters because the merger is pitched as a way to reduce Dominion's reliance on volatile PJM wholesale purchases — where fuel costs have risen nearly 90% in five years. Watch whether opponents challenge the commissioner's participation; a recusal dispute could delay the review straight into the November campaign, turning your electric bill into a ballot issue.

• Manassas nonprofit Creating Foundations for Hope expands housing programs to five new counties. The Manassas-based nonprofit is extending its Security Deposit Assistance and Senior Emergency Assistance programs into Fauquier, Madison, Culpeper, Orange, and Rappahannock counties, helping low-income residents and seniors cover upfront housing costs and emergency expenses through interest-free repayment plans. InsideNova

• 74-year-old Manassas man dies nearly a month after scooter collision; driver cited. John Wesley Marr succumbed to injuries on August 18 from a July 21 crash at Coverstone Drive and Aaron Lane, and driver Jorge Valentin Diaz Ramirez has been cited for failing to yield at a stop sign with a court appearance pending. Prince William Times

• New Arlington Education Association president calls for closer collaboration with Arlington Public Schools. Danielle Jones, a longtime Yorktown High School teacher newly elected as AEA president, told the Arlington School Board on August 13 that she wants communication "wide open" and aims to solve problems with APS leadership before they escalate. ARLnow

• Stafford County weighs reinstating BPOL business tax after steep homeowner tax hikes. County officials are debating bringing back a Business, Professional and Occupational License tax on gross business receipts after the real estate rate was raised to $0.9675 per $100 of assessed value, drawing criticism that homeowners are shouldering too much of the tax burden. Potomac Local News

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Pick Up and Drive bulk food pantry donations, Friday mornings only. This reads as a broad community-service option around Northern Virginia, not just another calendar event.

• Mold and rodents found inside Barack Obama Elementary School. Richmond Public Schools has confirmed the presence of mold and rodent activity at the school, prompting remediation efforts and renewing concerns about facility conditions and student health across the division. WRIC

• State revokes license of Goochland youth psychiatric facility after children's escape. The Spanberger administration revoked the license of Hallmark Youthcare in Goochland County six weeks after more than a dozen children ran away from the facility, following an investigation that found violations and obstruction of abuse inquiries. WTVR

• Henrico man pleads guilty to murder of toddler. A Henrico County man has entered a guilty plea in the death of a young child, a case that has drawn attention to child abuse and the county court system. WRIC

• Two men to pay more than $520,000 to families of JMU students killed in crash. Two men have agreed to the settlements with families of three James Madison University students who died following a fraternity-related event, while lawsuits continue against dozens of others alleged to share responsibility. WRIC

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Volunteer Tax Preparers Needed - FREE. Richmond is seeking volunteers to help prepare taxes at no cost.

• Norfolk officers file $20 million in lawsuits against city and Police Chief Mark Talbot over transgender locker room incident. Two female officers allege emotional distress, religious discrimination, and retaliation after raising concerns about a transgender recruit's access to the women's locker room in 2024, with the lawsuits naming both the City of Norfolk and Chief Talbot as defendants. WAVY

• West Nile virus detected in mosquitoes across multiple Virginia Beach neighborhoods. Virginia Beach Public Works reports a spike in mosquito samples testing positive for West Nile virus over the past three weeks, prompting intensified treatment and nighttime spraying by Mosquito Control crews, though no human cases have been reported. WAVY

• Man hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after West Liberty Street shooting in Norfolk. Norfolk Police are investigating after a gunshot victim was dropped off at Sentara Leigh Hospital following a late-night shooting in the 100 block of West Liberty Street, and detectives are asking the public for tips through the Crime Line. WAVY

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Hospice Volunteer Needed Enhabit Hospice ✨ Provide companionship and support to patients. Enhabit Hospice in Hampton Roads seeks a volunteer to offer companionship and support to patients.

• Free Bridge encampment residents say they're still in the dark as city's September 1 deadline nears. People living at the Rivanna/Free Bridge encampment say they lack clear information about what happens after the city's removal deadline, keeping homelessness and shelter policy at the center of Charlottesville's agenda. Charlottesville Tomorrow

• Albemarle County School Board member resigns; board votes for independent investigation into district. The board has ordered an independent review of the school division following concerns tied to recent arrests of Hollymead Elementary faculty members on child sex crime charges, compounding the impact of the resignation. Charlottesville Tomorrow

• Charlottesville City Council unanimously approves $3 million for Salvation Army shelter expansion. The council allocated $3 million in state funds to the Salvation Army's Center of Hope campaign, aimed at expanding emergency shelter bed capacity at the Ridge Street campus. Charlottesville Community Engagement

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Habitat for Humanity - Volunteer with Us Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville, VA. This reads as a broad community-service option around Charlottesville, not just another calendar event.

• Route 704 bridge over I-81 in Rockingham County to close for up to a week. The Cecil Wampler Road bridge will shut down beginning Thursday, August 20, for repair work, affecting local traffic in the Harrisonburg and Rockingham area. Rocktown Now

• Augusta County offices to close temporarily during transition to new tax administration software. The Augusta County Commissioner of the Revenue's Office and Treasurer's Office will have temporary closures this month as staff train on the new system, affecting residents seeking tax and revenue services. Augusta County

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Companion Hospice Volunteer-Fishersville area Legacy Hospice. Legacy Hospice seeks a companion hospice volunteer in the Fishersville area to help with service opportunities in the Shenandoah Valley.

• Williamsburg's Whaling Company to close permanently on August 28. The longtime seafood restaurant is ending a multi-decade run that saw multiple generations of local families work there, marking a significant loss for Williamsburg's dining scene. Williamsburg Yorktown Daily

• James City County and VCU launch first-of-its-kind drone AED delivery study. The county is partnering with Virginia Commonwealth University to test whether drones can deliver automated external defibrillators faster than traditional responders in rural parts of the county, with the goal of improving cardiac arrest survival rates. VPM

• York-Poquoson Sheriff's Office investigating fatal shooting of 18-year-old in Williamsburg-area neighborhood. Deputies are probing the circumstances of the shooting, which occurred in a quiet residential area, and are asking the public for information. The Triangle

• James City County approved to install automated speed enforcement cameras in I-64 work zones. The county will deploy vehicle-based speed cameras in Interstate 64 construction zones to reduce speeding-related crashes and improve worker safety. James City County

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Healthy Food Pantry Re-Stocking of Shelves Bon Secours Community Health Team. It is a practical volunteer option for readers who want a concrete shift rather than a calendar outing.

• Berglund Center focus group wraps up without a clear path forward on casino or redevelopment. Roanoke's Entertainment District Focus Group concluded months of meetings on the aging venue's future but stopped short of taking a pro- or anti-casino stance, with Councilman Phazhon Nash saying City Council needs time to review the findings before deciding next steps. Cardinal News

• New River Valley startup Narro delivers its first electric truck to Pulaski County today. The New River Valley-based company is handing over the keys to its first commercial electric truck to Pulaski County on August 20, marking an early milestone for clean transportation manufacturing in southwest Virginia. WVTF

• Cube Fest 2026 returns to Virginia Tech's Center for the Arts this weekend. The free, immersive spatial-audio festival runs Friday through Sunday in Blacksburg under the theme "Spoken Words," featuring international artists and culminating in a spatial orchestration of De La Soul's 3 Feet High and Rising. Cardinal News

• Worth doing / ways to get involved: Hospice Volunteer Agape Care Group. Agape Care Group seeks volunteers in Roanoke to support hospice service opportunities.

• Northern Virginia: Pick Up and Drive bulk food pantry donations, Friday mornings only. This reads as a broad community-service option around Northern Virginia, not just another calendar event.

• Richmond: Volunteer Tax Preparers Needed - FREE. Richmond is seeking volunteers to help prepare taxes at no cost.