It’s the end of the second week of 2022, and over 324 hours have happened so far. Not everyone has experienced the exact same situations so far, but it’s perhaps quite certain that the year to date has not been quite what people expected. What do people expect? I have no specific knowledge, but listeners and readers of Charlottesville Community Engagement have come to expect a lot of information stitched together in a reasonable manner.
On today’s program:
The U.S. Supreme Court says a plan to require American businesses require a vaccine mandate is not Constitutional
Governor Northam makes a lot of announcements in his final hours in office
General Assembly committees continue to interview Governor Glenn Youngkin’s top appointments
First shout-out
In today’s first subscriber-supported public service announcement: The Charlottesville Jazz Society at cvillejazz.org is dedicated to the promotion, preservation, and perpetuation of all that jazz, and while this might not be the time to go out and listen people who love to play it’s a great time to learn about musicians in our area. The Charlottesville Jazz Society web site is dedicated to enriching your experience of jazz within the Charlottesville community and beyond. Go visit cvillejazz.org.
And if you’d like to get a mention in this space, consider a $25 a month Patreon contribution.
U.S. Supreme Court denies federal vaccine mandate
The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a bid by the Biden administration to require most businesses to mandate vaccines by using the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The 6-3 ruling states that OSHA does not have enforcement authority. (read the ruling and dissent)
“Although Congress has enacted significant legislation addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, it has declined to enact any measures to what OSHA has promulgated here,” reads the ruling in National Federation of Independent Business v. Osha.
The ruling called the mandate “a significant encroachment” and that OSHA only has the power to set workplace safety standards but not to issue “broad public health measures.” To the majority of Justices, COVID-19 is not an occupational hazard but instead can spread wherever people gather.
“That kind of universal risk is no different from the day-to-day dangers that all face from crime, air pollution, or any number of communicable diseases,” the ruling continues.
The case was consolidated with another in which 27 states sought a stay. There are currently 27 Republican governors. The six Justices on the majority were all appointed by Republican presidents. The three dissenting Justices were appointed by Democratic presidents who argue in their dissent that the majority “seriously misapplies the applicable legal standards.”
However, in another case, the Supreme Court ruled on a 5-4 vote that the Secretary of Health and Human Services does have the authority to require that health care and assisted living facilities that receive Medicare and Medicaid can impose a COVID vaccine mandate. (read that ruling)
Today’s pandemic numbers
Today, the Virginia Department of Health reports another 17,219 cases and the percent positivity remains at 35.8 percent, among the highest levels of the pandemic. There are 3,845 people in Virginia hospitals with COVID, 656 of whom are in intensive care units and 360 are on ventilators.
Dr. Costi Sifri is director of hospital epidemiology at the University of Virginia Health System, where there continue to be COVID patients.
“We are seeing that about 75 percent of those individuals are not vaccinated,” said Dr. Sifri. “The remaining 25 percent typically are immunosuppressed or have preexisting conditions that put them at high risk for COVID, things like heart failure, heart disease, advanced diabetes, and other medical problems like that. And often while those people have been vaccinated, they’re often not boosted.”
In the Blue Ridge Health District there are another 470 new cases today and the percent positivity is at 29 percent. These are among the highest numbers of the pandemic so far, and the sustained effort can be a struggle for health care workers. Wendy Horton is the chief executive officer of UVA Health.
“We are two years in and people are exhausted and I think from time to time we saw glimmers of hope that we may be seeing the end of the tunnel and it’s more intense at least for those of us in Charlottesville than it has ever been,” Horton said. “People are tired. They’re really trying the best to serve our patients and our community and at the same time personally impacted this time around.”
This morning, the Bodo’s trio of bagel shops announced they will now offer food on a take-out only basis.
Northam touts final achievements, including awards to local housing nonprofits
As the hours of his government tick away, Governor Ralph Northam continues to make announcements including the award of $8.2 million dollars in projects to reduce homelessness. Northam directed the funding to come from the Virginia Housing Trust Fund to go toward about 100 projects across the Commonwealth. They include $220,387 to the Valley Community Services Board for a project called Rapid Re-Housing Youth and $150,000 for Miriam’s House Community First program in the Bedford area. Read the rest in the full press release.
In all, Northam has issued over a dozen announcements of activities in his final week including a wind energy partnership with Denmark, land acquisition for the Chickahominy Tribe, $267 million investment in a paperboard recycling plant in Chesapeake, and $60 million in affordable and special needs housing loans.
On that latter matter, Piedmont Housing Alliance will receive $3.4 million for 70 units at Southwood Apartments. Virginia Supportive Housing received $2.5 million for 80 units at the Premier Circle project and $2.4 million for the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority for the second phase of the South Street redevelopment. Over in Waynesboro, the South River Development Corporation got $2 million for the redevelopment of the Brandon Hotel for senior units. (read the release)
Northam also announced that the Commonwealth of Virginia has signed an agreement with Norfolk Southern to expand passenger service to Christiansburg as part of the Western Rail Initiative. Earlier this week the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority approved the deal which will see the state purchasing 28 miles of right of way between Salem and Christiansburg.
The announcement also states that a second train will be added to the Northeast Regional service between Roanoke and Boston sometime later this year. No specific date is mentioned.
Second shout-out
Today’s second subscriber-supported public service announcement goes out to Camp Albemarle, which has for sixty years been a “wholesome rural, rustic and restful site for youth activities, church groups, civic events and occasional private programs.”
Located on 14 acres on the banks of the Moorman’s River near Free Union, Camp Albemarle continues as a legacy of being a Civilian Conservation Corps project that sought to promote the importance of rural activities. Camp Albemarle seeks support for a plan to winterize the Hamner Lodge, a structure built in 1941 by the CCC and used by every 4th and 5th grade student in Charlottesville and Albemarle for the study of ecology for over 20 years. If this campaign is successful, Camp Albemarle could operate year-round. Consider your support by visiting http://campalbemarleva.org/donate.
Legislative update: Kay Coles James asked about rights’ restoration
We’re on Day 3 of the General Assembly, and as the morning began, not one of the 1,919 bills has been rejected. That’s mostly because committees are just meeting, organizing, and interviewing members of the Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin’s cabinet. That included Fauquier County Sheriff Bob Mosier, who was interviewed by the House Public Safety Committee this morning. That included this question from Delegate Angelia Williams Graves (D-90)
Graves:
“What is your position with regards to bias training? Is it something that you support or is it something that you don’t feel is necessary?”
Mosier:
“Oh no, we have it. It’s part of our program. Remember I talked about accreditation a few moments ago? That’s part of it. These are all things that are doable if we can pull the resources together to properly train people, right, for accreditation, and salaries, and all of different things things, then we can get a better law enforcement officer across the board. That’s absolutely part of the program.”
You can watch the full meeting at this link.
Later in the morning, the House Privileges and Elections Committee interviewed Kay Cole James, Youngkin’s nominee for Secretary of the Commonwealth. That person has many tasks including finding people to be appointed to the hundreds and hundreds of slots for Boards, Commissions, and Councils. The position also oversees clemency petitions and the restoration of civil rights.
“When I look at that office, the first thing I think about is that the Secretary of the Commonwealth with its constituent services is the portal for many Virginians to bring before the Governor their concerns, their complaints, their anxieties, or something they want to just have an audience or to hear,” James said.
James has served as the director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in the first term of President George W. Bush, an experience she cited in her testimony to the House Privileges and Elections Committee. James said she looked forward to other duties that come with the office.
“Very often what gets overlooked and is an important part of this particular job as well is looking at restoration of rights and pardons and I want you to know that both on a very personal level and a professional level that is very important to me,” James said.
Many of the questions from Delegates followed up on that point. In response to one, James said the key is to find employers who are willing to hire those reentering society. Delegate Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-72) asked James how the new administration would change the past eight years of policy.
“We’ve had two Governors in a row who have really kind of accelerated rights restoration and done more than previous Governors and I wonder if the plan of this administration is to continue on that path?” VanValkenburg asked.
“I want to make it clear its not about numbers, it’s about people,” James said. “And every single request that comes into that office will be given great consideration.”
VanValkenburg asked James for her position on bills calling for a Constitutional Amendment to allow restoration of rights to be automatic. In the House of Delegares, there are both HJ9 and HJ28, each filed by a member of a different party.
“I don’t want to opine on the legislation,” James said. “I have not seen it. I don’t know what it is. I will operate well within the confines of the law of whatever it is that you in the General Assembly along with the Governor decide,” James said.
And at the end of this installment of Charlottesville Community Engagement, there are 1,925 bills pending and none of them have yet failed. Bound to happen, very soon.
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January 14, 2022: Northam touts achievements in final days as Virginia's Governor; U.S. Supreme Court rules against OSHA vaccine mandate