OCCOQUAN, Va. — Tickets are now available online for the 6th Annual Duck Splash Race in the Town of Occoquan.

Watch thousands of rubber ducks drop from a bridge and race along the Occoquan River on Saturday, June 16, at 12:30 p.m. “Adopt” a duck for $5 and win one of ten cash prizes ranging from $20 to $500. Net proceeds benefit the 501(c)(3) Prince William Trails and Streams Coalition, an organization dedicated to building a ne

QUANTICO, Va. — For the first time, female Marine Corps Officers will be allowed to train at Quantico’s combat infantry school.

The Marine Corps Times broke the news Friday. The move is a change for the Corps, which up until now has urged women to train for more positions that provide a supporting role for those on the front line, including aircraft maintenance and administration.

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By Lance Cpl. Shandra Dyess
Quantico Sentry

QUANTICO, Va. — Fifteen volunteers helped out during the Amazing Devil Dog Challenge at Barber Physical Activity Center on base Friday.

The volunteers arrived at the gym at approximately 5 a.m. to help with setting up the event and registering teams. Christi Lee, fitness trainer and event coordinator for the gym, briefed the volunteers on everything they’d be doing that morning. Some of the Marines helped set up a table in one of the rooms and registered teams as they entered, while others headed out to their posts around the base.

“The volunteers are a tremendous help,” said Lee. “Without them, we couldn’t do all of this. Our staff is just too small.”

There were 26 teams, all of which started out in front of the gym. The teams would run to seven different places to answer a trivia question. If the teams couldn’t answer completely and correctly, they’d have to perform a penalty before heading to the next stop.

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WOODBRIDGE, Va. — The Potomac Nationals return to Woodbridge tonight after a two-in-a-row wash out.

Rainy weather over the weekend forced the postponement of two games, on Saturday and Sunday, between the Salem Red Sox. Both games ill be made up later this season, stated Potomac Nationals spokesman Tim Swartz.

Fans can exchange tickets for any other game except for the July 4th contest, he added. The Salem Red Sox will be back at Pfitzner Stadium in Woodbridge for a three-game series Friday through Sunday June 8 – 10.

The Potomac Nationals are back on the field at 7 p.m. to face the Winston-Salem Dash. After tonight’s game, they’ll be back on Friday for a 10-game homestand against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

 

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — At the top of a hill on U.S. 1 in Woodbridge, just past several car dealerships sits an open field and a closed fast food restaurant.

Now boarded up, the Burger King that once served customers along this busy highway has been closed for years. Unlike its counterpart at Tackett’s Mill in Lake Ridge, it shows no sign of coming back.

So, as we continue our series about redeveloping brown spots in the Potomac Communities, we want to know from you “what should go here?”

Please comment below and tell us.

 

By Amir Vera
Capital News Service

RICHMOND, Va. – When Tiffany Glass Ferreira’s son Charlie was 3, she offered him a treat that nearly killed him.

“I gave him cashews. He took one bite and started to have a severe reaction, where he was crying, grabbing his tongue – his face started to swell,” Ferreira said. “He looked like a Klingon, like a science-fiction character.”

Charlie, now 5, ultimately recovered. To save other children from potentially fatal reactions to food allergies, Virginia last week adopted a law requiring schools to carry epinephrine auto-injectors, such as EpiPens.

These devices deliver a single dose of epinephrine, or adrenaline, into the thigh of someone suffering a life-threatening allergic reaction.

After talking with other mothers in support groups, Ferreira, who supports the EpiPen legislation, said she realized she can’t stop Charlie from having another reaction, but she can be prepared for it.

“I said, ‘How can I prevent this from happening again?’ Another mom said to me, ‘You can’t. It’s going to happen again. You can’t think if they have a reaction. You have to think when,’ ” Ferreira said.

The “when” factor is exactly what Sen. Donald McEachin, D-Richmond, had in mind when he introduced Senate Bill 656. SB 656 will require schools to carry epinephrine auto-injectors in case a child has a severe allergic reaction.

“The EpiPen bill does two things. For those jurisdictions that already had … the EpiPens in the schools, it allows them to have enough flexibility to continue handling the EpiPen issue the way they’ve been handling it,” McEachin said.

“For everybody else, it writes a protocol as to the need to have the EpiPen in the school, who can administer it and who can write prescriptions for it, because at the end of the day, it’s a medicine and it has to be prescribed.”

The bill also requires school nurses and other employees to be trained before injecting students with EpiPens.

During its regular session, the General Assembly overwhelmingly passed SB 656 and an identical House bill, HB 1107, sponsored by Delegate Thomas “Tag” Greason, R-Lansdowne.

Gov. Bob McDonnell recommended that the legislation be amended to make it clear that school boards must implement the EpiPen law by the start of the 2012-13 school year. On Wednesday, the House and Senate unanimously approved McDonnell’s recommendations. The governor plans to sign the law this Thursday.

John Rokenbrod, a spokesman for the Amelia County public school system west of Richmond, said current laws require students to bring their own medications, such as EpiPens, to school.

“In the past, you had to have specific permission for that student. You had to have a prescription and permission to administer the medication,” Rokenbrod said.

The new legislation is intended to ensure that children without an EpiPen are not out of luck when they have an allergic reaction. Also, school officials will be trained to recognize signs of a severe reaction and to administer epinephrine.

McEachin’s bill was introduced shortly after 7-year-old Ammaria Johnson, a first-grader at Hopkins Elementary School in Chesterfield County, died in January from an allergic reaction to peanuts.

Ammaria’s death prompted groups such as the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network in Fairfax to call for laws allowing schools to stock EpiPens for use in emergencies.

“Absolutely, this one was inspired by the death of that little girl,” McEachin said.

McEachin said he hopes the law will help avoid tragedies like Ammaria’s death.

“Maybe some little girl or some little boy won’t die from an allergy when that’s absolutely preventable,” McEachin said.

By Charles Couch
Capital News Service

RICHMOND, Va. – The General Assembly last week upheld all six of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s vetoed bills, including one that would have increased fines on Virginia residents with out-of-state license plates.

The assembly reconvened for a one-day session to consider the governor’s vetoes and recommendations regarding legislation passed during the 2012 regular session.

Overriding a veto requires a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate. Legislators’ votes Wednesday fell short of that threshold. As a result, lawmakers sustained all of McDonnell’s vetoes.

The House debated two vetoes in particular: HB 423, requiring the state’s Common Interest Community Board to develop model “declarations,” or regulations, for homeowners associations; and HB 878, increasing the fines on Virginia drivers with out-of-state license plates.

Homeowners Association’s Rules

Delegate David Bulova, D-Fairfax Station, had sponsored HB 423. He said the legislation was needed because homeowners associations have a significant bearing on Virginians’ day-to-day lives.

“I don’t know that you could move anywhere in my district without being a member of a homeowners association and being subject to the declarations and instruments that come with that HOA membership,” Bulova said.

“They’re quasi-governmental units, and they wield enormous amounts of power.” That power can range from regulating paint colors and home additions to imposing fines and liens on residents.

When you buy a house in a neighborhood regulated by a homeowners association, you must join the group and adhere to its declarations, Bulova said. “Declarations are usually put in place long before a homeowner ever moves into a development. When you purchase a new home, the declaration is a take-it-or-leave-it proposition.”

Bulova said his bill would not dictate rules for homeowners associations.

“It does not create mandatory regulations,” he said. “But it does require the Common Interest Community Board to establish a best practice and a model declaration that can be used as a gold standard.”

In vetoing HB 423, McDonnell said state law already outlines the minimum components for homeowners associations’ declarations. “While perhaps well intentioned, this bill increases the Common Interest Community Board’s workload without any discernible benefit,” the governor said.

Delegate David Albo, R-Springfield, said he supported the governor’s veto.

“It’s just impossible to come up with model policies when every single homeowners association is different,” Albo said. “So, again it’s a good idea, but it’s unworkable.”

After the debate, the House voted 36-59 against overriding McDonnell’s veto.

Out-of-State License Plates

Delegates later debated the veto of HB 878, proposed by Delegate Mark Sickles, D-Franconia. It targeted Virginians who try to avoid the state law requiring them to obtain Virginia license plates. For instance, many Virginians register their vehicles in Maryland, which doesn’t have a property tax on cars, Sickles said.

The fine for failing to register a vehicle in Virginia is $100, he noted. “It has been $100 since 1988, and it’s not much of an incentive. It is the cost of doing business.”

Sickles’ bill would have increased the fine to $250.

Delegate Benjamin Cline, R-Amherst, urged House members to uphold McDonnell’s veto of HB 878. He said the penalty contained in the bill wasn’t a fine but a tax.

“Make no bones about it – this is a tax,” Cline said. “This is a tax on individuals who do not register their cars in Virginia but who live in Virginia.” Cline said no law in Virginia prevents residents from having out-of-state license plates.

Sickles said that was incorrect. “This is not a new law,” he said. HB 878 simply increases a fine on “tax cheaters” that has not been adjusted since 1988, he said.

The House voted to override McDonnell’s veto, 64-31. But the override motion failed in the Senate. (The Senate vote was 21-16 in favor of overriding the veto. The motion needed 27 votes to pass.)

Voter Identification Recommendations

Besides sustaining the vetoes, the General Assembly reviewed McDonnell’s proposed amendments to more than 100 pieces of legislation.

For example, the governor recommended 10 changes to HB 9 and SB 1, which would require Virginians to show an approved form of identification to cast an official ballot on Election Day. (Currently, people without ID can vote if they sign an affidavit swearing they are registered. Under the legislation, such people would cast a provisional ballot, which would be counted only if they present proper ID by the day after the election.)

McDonnell proposed relaxing parts of the legislation. For instance, he recommended that officials compare the signature on a voter’s provisional ballot with the signature on file with the State Board of Elections. This would negate the need for provisional voters to present an ID to election officials after the election.

Delegate Joseph Morrissey, D-Highland Springs, questioned the feasible of signature comparison. He said that handwriting comparison requires expertise and that signatures change as people age.

“Handwriting identification analysis is a specific discipline that is taught and requires years of training before one can be deemed a handwriting expert,” Morrissey said.

McDonnell also recommended that provisional voters have three days after an election, instead of just one, to submit proper identification so that their ballots would be counted.

Delegate Gregory Habeeb, R-Salem, said he was concerned about the ramifications this extension could have on special elections.

“For those of us who are elected the day before the session began, this three-day window would delay seating a member of this body,” Habeeb said. “I think that creates a situation where voters aren’t represented where they need to do.”

Ultimately, all 10 of the governor’s recommendations to the voter-ID bills failed – half in the House, the others in the Senate. McDonnell now must decide whether to sign the legislation into law or to veto it outright.

Democrats, who have criticized the legislation as an unconstitutional attempt to suppress the votes of minority and elderly Virginians, called on McDonnell to reject the bills.

“Frankly, I can tell that the governor tried to fix the bill and make it better, but actually it does not,” said Delegate Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria. “His amendments don’t make it better, and the only appropriate action on this bill is to veto it.”

VRE FARE INCREASE TO NET $900,000

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — It’s going to cost Virginia Railway Express riders more to ride starting July 1.

And with low turnout at a series of seven recent public hearings on the proposed fare increases, riders don’t seem to mind.

Starting July 1, a single one-way ride on the railroad’s Fredericksburg line, from Fredericksburg to Washington’s Union Station will cost $10.65, up from $10.30 and the cost of a monthly pass $294.10, up from $285.50.

On the Manassas line, a one-way trip from the Broad Run – Airport, Manassas, or Manassas Park stations to Union Station will cost $8.75, up from $4.20.

The three-percent fare increase is expected to generate $900,000 in additional fare revenue in 2013 which will go to offset increases in fuel costs, rising third party retail sales commissions, facilities maintenance, and scheduled rising costs contained in VRE’s operations contract with Keolis Rail Services of America.

At the same time, the local jurisdictions that fund VRE – including Prince William and Stafford counties – will also increase their funding subsidy to VRE by an additional three percent. In 2011, local jurisdictions accounted $16 million of the system’s $128 million in revenues. Local jurisdiction funding was down last year about seven percent from 2009.

Over the course of seven public hearings about the proposed fare increases, few if any people said they were opposed. Out of 65 comments, just 25 opposed the increase.

But Stafford Board of Supervisors Chairman Susan Stimpson, and Aquia District Supervisor Paul Milde who both serve on the VRE Board that governs the railroad, voted against the increase on Friday.

“Supervisor Milde and I voted no to this increase because the VRE budget also raises the rate that localities pay in to VRE by three percent. A committee composed of staff from each of the counties looked at VRE’s budget and recommended fares stay the same with the three percent increase to localities. VRE already has at least $2 million more in surplus because of increased ridership. And we have replaced all locomotives and only have 17 cars that aren’t new. Our on-time performance this month was 97 percent,” Stimpson posted to her Facebook page.

It’s no secret that with increased ridership over the past year that fare revenues are up. But what looks like a projected surplus on paper is actually monies that will most likely go back into rail system at the end of the fiscal year on June 30, said VRE spokesman Mark Roeber.

“We need additional rail cars to replace the old ones, as well as to modernize the ones we are using. So, if any additional money is left at the end of the year it will most likely be put into a capital reserve that will go to fund new rolling stock, new locomotives, as well as track improvements,” said Roeber.

Since 2004, VRE has acquired several pieces of new rolling stock including 20 new locomotives and 71 new passenger rail cars.

 

WORLDWIDE PROTEST SIGNS APPEAR IN WOODBRIDGE

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — The worldwide KONY 2012 protest has come to the Potomac Communities.

Signs synonymous with the protest sprung up overnight along U.S. 1 in Woodbridge and on signs along Old Bridge Road in Lake Ridge.

The protest are part of the “Cover the Night” campaign meant to draw attention to Ugandan leader Joseph Kony, who is accused of turning children into soldiers, using them as sex slaves, and killing them. A video produced by the group “Invisible Children” went viral earlier this year and urges world leaders to have Kony arrested before the end of the year.

KONY 2012 posters and chalk graffiti also appeared this morning in Fredericksburg’s Central Park, where police said it could take some $3,000 to remove from privately owned buildings.

In Woodbridge, the Fearcliff indoor skate park on Friday served as an informal rallying point for KONY 2012 protesters. KONY 2012 posters line the front of the skate shop on U.S. 1 near Featherstone Road.

“We had about 100 posters printed up, so we wanted to do something to further the movement,” said Fearcliff owner Thomas Kemper. “Right now, we’re focusing on getting our shop open but if Invisible Children wants to do anything else, we’ll support them.”

The skate shop is set to open May 12.

It’s going to be a rainy weekend across the Potomac Communities.

Showers and thunderstorms are forecast Saturday with possible rainfall amounts totaling between a half and three-quarters of an inch. The day will start off cloudy with high temperatures reaching the upper 70s, but increasing clouds will bring rain, according to the National Weather Service.

On Sunday, more rain is expected and it could be heavier than what’s expected to fall Saturday. Between three quarters to one inch of rain is forecast for Sunday, according to the weather service.

Though the rain will fall on a weekend, it’s much needed precipitation.

Areas here in the Mid-Atlantic and in the Northeast are seeing rainfall deficits between four and eight inches with the regions being “abnormally dry” over the last several weeks.

The USGS reports stream levels in the region are at near record lows for April 17, but most reservoirs have not been impacted by the dry season following a wet winter.