Don Beyer | ALXnow

Morning Notes

Published March 11, 2021 at 8:00AM

Beyer Enthusiastic After American Rescue Plan Passage — “THERE IT IS: the House just passed the American Rescue Plan, sending the bill to President Biden’s desk for signature! We did it!!!” [Twitter]

Metro Service Cuts Averted With Passage Of COVID Relief Bill — “While it will take more time to work out all the details, including Metro’s exact share of this funding, the $1.4 billion provided by the American Recovery Plan for our region’s transit agencies will allow us to avert the painful service reductions and layoffs that were on the table.” [Patch]

News

Beyer Throws Weight Behind Labor Unions as Council Punts Collective Bargaining Debate

By James Cullum

Published March 10, 2021 at 3:45PM | Updated March 10, 2021 at 4:06PM

Alexandria City Hall (staff photo by James Cullum)

After a long meeting that stretched into the early hours of Wednesday, the Alexandria City Council punted on a collective bargaining ordinance to an upcoming special meeting.

The meeting, which is not yet officially set, is intended to allow Council members to go through issues line by line. The establishment of a community police review board was also pushed to the same meeting.

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published March 8, 2021 at 9:00AM

Northam Remarks on a Year of Coronavirus — “For far too many people, life will never be the same again. It has been a hard year, but I have been encouraged by the strength of Virginians in every corner of our Commonwealth.” [Patch]

Beyer Remarks on a Year of Coronavirus — “A year ago today Virginia’s first case of coronavirus was confirmed at Ft. Belvoir in Fairfax County. I remember it like it was yesterday, a frightening time. We’ve lost so many people since then, as the country endured misery and hardship. But we are going to beat this virus.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published March 3, 2021 at 9:00AM

Inside and outside of Vola's in Old Town (staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

Alexandria to Get Johnson & Johnson Vaccines Next Week — On Saturday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use. Adding a third vaccine to Alexandria’s pandemic response is significant and will ultimately mean that more vaccines are available to protect more people… Johnson & Johnson vaccines will become available in Alexandra starting later this week.” [City of Alexandria]

Beyer, Kaine Introduce ‘The Cost of Police Misconduct Act’ — “Most Americans have no idea how much cities and counties they live in spend on police misconduct because cases are often settled in secret. The Cost of Police Misconduct Act would make these costs public, which we hope and believe would help save lives.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 26, 2021 at 9:00AM

Independent Investigation Clears ALX Chamber CEO of Wrongdoing — “The Chamber will be immediately scheduling workplace professionalism training for all staff and Chamber leadership and the Chamber’s Code of Conduct will be updated and clearly communicated to staff and members.” [Alexandria Living]

Beyer Votes ‘YES’ as House Passes Equality Act — “The House just passed the Equality Act, which would protect LGBTQ Americans from discrimination in the workplace, in housing, in receiving health care, and more. I voted YES; this is the final vote:” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 23, 2021 at 9:00AM

Beyer Asks for Pause After 500,000 COVID-19 Deaths — “500,000 Americans have now died from COVID-19. Every one of them was a person with a story, friends, a family. It’s a tragedy that’s too large to comprehend, but we should take time today to think about them, and strengthen our resolve to do all we can to end this awful pandemic.” [Twitter]

Eviction Moratorium Extended to March 31 — “The CDC moratorium on residential evictions has been extended thru March 31. If you received an eviction notice, call the Office of Housing at 703.746.4990.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 22, 2021 at 9:00AM

The George Washington National Masonic Memorial on Feb. 18, 2021. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Beyer Praises U.S. Rejoining Paris Climate Agreement — “Excellent news. At last!” [Twitter]

Alexandria library Launches Mobile App — “Library access is now available everywhere you go. Alexandria Library today launched its new mobile app, making their whole catalog and more available on your smartphone.” [Zebra]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 19, 2021 at 9:00AM

Sledding on the lawn of the George Washington National Masonic Memorial in Old Town, Feb. 18, 2021. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Beyer Wants Federal Employees to Get Vaccine — “Our region has the largest concentration of federal employees. Many qualify as essential workers with local jurisdictions responsible for vaccinations. We’re asking the federal government to vaccinate feds via a separate federalized allocation to speed up vaccinations in the DMV.” [Twitter]

Alexandria Vaccinates 20,000 Residents — “On a hopeful note, Alexandria also hit the milestone this week of more than 20,000 residents vaccinated. AHD and private providers continue to vaccinate and work to schedule the tens of thousands of residents who pre-registered for vaccines.” [City of Alexandria]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 18, 2021 at 9:00AM

Sleeping on a bench on the Alexandria waterfront. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

More Than 20K Vaccines Distributed in Alexandria — “The latest update from the City on COVID-19: 20,726 doses administered to Alexandrians; 4,666 Alexandrians fully vaccinated (2.9%); Positive tests up 19 to 10,056 in the City (259 in last week); 7-day Positivity Rate steady at 6.4%; 1 new hospitalization.” [Twitter]

Beyer Elected Chair of House Committee of Space and Aeronautics — “Really exciting news: my colleagues have elected me chair of @HouseScience‘s Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee! I am ready and eager to boldly go forward with an ambitious space policy agenda in the 117th Congress.” [Twitter]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 12, 2021 at 9:00AM

Beyer Says COVID Relief Legislation Will Save Economy — “Today we answered the call of the American people by advancing big, ambitious legislation in @WaysMeansCmte to help end the pandemic and save the economy. We are working to meet the nation’s need with the scale and speed that this crisis requires.” [Twitter]

Northam Sends Letter to FEMA Asking for Increased Assistance With Vaccination — “Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser sent a two-page letter to FEMA and HHS leaders requesting increased support for COVID-19 vaccination efforts of essential federal employees. It specifically asks that the federal government vaccinate its own workers, including contractors and WMATA employees.” [Zebra]

News

Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published February 11, 2021 at 9:00AM

Beyer Says Trump Defense Weak During Senate Impeachment Hearing — “The House Managers established that Trump lied about the election, inspired the attackers to come to DC, directed them to the Capitol, and did nothing for hours to stop their violent attack. Senate Republicans objected, strenuously, to details of a phone call. And nothing else.” [Twitter]

CVS Starts Offering COVID-19 Vaccines in Alexandria and Fairfax County — “People interested in a vaccine are allowed to register through both the city or county health departments and through CVS at the same time, but local health department officials are pleading with people who get their vaccine through CVS to remove themselves from the health department waiting lists so others can get vaccinated faster.” [Alexandria Living]