Virginia
Virginia’s New Permitting Portal Is A Model For Other States
Virginia is making it easier for applicants to track permits with an innovative new online permit … [+]
getty
Our nation’s system of environmental permitting is broken, putting both economic growth and the clean energy transition at risk. So it’s a relief that permitting reform has received attention in recent weeks, following updates to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in the debt ceiling deal between President Biden and congressional Republicans.
While those changes probably won’t radically speed up energy and infrastructure projects in America, they are meaningful because NEPA has historically been an untouchable “third rail” in environmental debates. Thus, the debt limit deal may only represent the beginning of federal permitting reform.
However, it is also notable that states are taking steps to reform their permitting procedures too. One example comes from Virginia, a state that has established a new permitting portal where applicants, as well as government employees and members of the public, can track a permit application as it makes its way through the process.
That may sound like no big deal, but websites offering real-time permit tracking are relatively rare in government. One state official told me it’s like a FedEx
FDX
The website—called the Permitting Enhancement and Evaluation Platform, or PEEP—is just in pilot phase for now, and it is focused on one state agency to start, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). On the webpage, a person can view information about the various projects awaiting DEQ approval, as well as where they are in the process, what’s been completed, and what remains to be done as well.
The portal is visually pleasing and easy to use. It documents the key steps, the time each step should take, how long steps have actually taken, and who is in charge of each task (the applicant or DEQ). The dashboard creates transparency and accountability, ensuring all parties know who is responsible for the next action.
The portal functions as both a management tool—allowing government to better track permits it is working on approving—as well as a customer service device, enabling applicants going through the permitting process to better track what stage their application is at. The portal even includes a notification system for government employees when they miss a deadline.
States looking to enhance transparency in their own permitting procedures should look to the new portal in Virginia as a model. Another potential model is a national dashboard from the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, a committee created in 2015 to speed up and improve the environmental review and authorization process for major infrastructure projects.
From my discussions with officials in Virginia, the plan is to eventually have as many state permitting processes tracked in the PEEP system as possible. This will be a huge win for Virginians currently suffering under the heavy burden of red tape, and it comes on the heels of other notable regulatory modernization efforts the state is taking under the leadership of Governor Glenn Youngkin.
For example, Virginia is noteworthy for setting up one of the nation’s first regulatory budgets, and the state has even set an ambitious 25 % reduction goal based on new agency inventories of regulatory requirements. Virginia established an Office of Regulatory Management to require and review economic analysis from state agencies, so that rules are based on evidence and not just good intentions.
Governor Youngkin and DEQ Director Mike Rolband both deserve credit for setting up the state’s innovative portal. Given permitting reform is a hot topic right now, other states should pay attention. While most of the focus remains at the federal level, states are doing what they can. Leading the way is Virginia.
PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. – The identity of the top MS-13 gang leader who was arrested on Thursday morning in Dale City has been released.
MS-13 gang leader arrested
What we know:
The 24-year-old suspect has been identified as Henrry Josue Villatoro Santos. The suspect was illegally in possession of guns, silencers, and additional items at the time of his arrest.
READ MORE: What is MS-13? Here’s what we know
According to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, the arrest took place in Dale City on Thursday morning.
The suspect was charged with being an undocumented immigrant in possession of a firearm.
AG Bondi shared officials have been working on this operation for days and weeks. The suspect apprehended was the top leader of MS-13 for the U.S. East Coast.
“He is an illegal alien from El Salvador, and he will not be living in our country much longer.”
President Trump’s response
What they’re saying:
“Great job by Pam Bondi, Kash Patel, Tom HOMAN, and Kristi N, on the capture of MS13 leader – A big deal!” President Donald Trump wrote on social media.
The Trump administration has deported several top members of MS-13 to El Salvador for incarceration.
The Source: Information from FOX News and The Associated Press was used to write this report.
The alleged US East Coast leader of the MS-13 gang has been arrested in Virginia, the US attorney general has announced.
The 24-year-old suspect from El Salvador was identified as one of the top three leaders in the United States of the street gang, which has a reputation for extreme violence, Pam Bondi said during a news conference after his arrest.
She told reporters: “The bad guy is in jail.”
“America is safer today because one of the top domestic terrorists in MS-13… is off the streets.
“We want to make our schools safer. We want to make your neighbourhoods safer. This guy was living in a neighbourhood right around you, no longer.”
The Justice Department has not yet released the suspect’s name or detailed the charges against him.
The MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, is an international criminal gang that was set up in Los Angeles in the 1980s. It was formed by immigrants who had fled El Salvador‘s civil war to protect Salvadoran immigrants from rival gangs.
The group was declared a terrorist organisation by the Trump administration last month.
In a Truth Social post, President Trump said: “Just captured a major leader of MS13”. He did not offer additional details.
Mr Trump has previously blamed the gang’s growth on lax immigration policies in the US.
Ms Bondi told reporters that the suspect was living illegally in the US, around 35 miles (56km) from Washington.
She said the suspect was recruited by the MS-13 at a young age, and led the gang’s operation on the East Coast.
Read more on Sky News:
UK and France to send teams to Ukraine
Tourist submarine sinks in Egypt
Several wounded in Amsterdam stabbing
In 2016, two high school girls, Nisa Mickens, 15, and Kayla Cuevas, 16, were killed on New York’s Long Island – bringing national attention to the gang.
The teenage friends were attacked with a machete and baseball bat by young men and teenagers who had stalked them from a car.
More killing followed in the subsequent months.
Over a dozen gang members have been indicted on terrorism charges – in relation to organised crime in the US, Mexico, and El Salvador – over the past two decades.
A Virginia mother who lost her son to fentanyl is trying to save others from the drug.
A bill named after her son was just signed into law by Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
“I want my son’s legacy to be measured in lives saved,” Thurraya Kent said.
The News4 I-Team first spoke with the Kent family from Northern Virginia about their son, Malcolm, last year.
They shared that their son was an energetic, adventurous 17-year-old looking forward to graduating high school, when he died suddenly in January 2023.
“We found out from the medical examiner weeks later that it was from fentanyl poisoning,” Kent said.
The Kents learned Malcolm had taken something and rushed him to the emergency room.
“The emergency room, after a few hours, sent them home, and Malcolm died within a day – overnight.” Kent said.
Since Malcolm’s passing, his mother has been fighting to prevent other families from going through this.
She worked with State Del. Irene Shin on “Malcolm’s Law,” which requires hospitals in Virginia to test urine samples for fentanyl.
“The standard urine test does not test for fentanyl,” Kent said. “… The only person testing them is the medical examiner, which means when they seek treatment, they’re not getting all the information necessary to make sound treatment decisions.”
The governor signed Malcolm’s Law last week. It will go into effect Jan. 1.
“It can’t happen a day sooner,” Kent said. “And I know it won’t bring Malcolm back, but I’m prayerful that his legacy will now be measured in lives saved.”
There are similar bills in other states. Kent is working with moms who have lost loved ones to fentanyl on getting a federal bill passed.
Correction (Thursday, March 27, 5:41 a.m.): This story previously misspelled Malcolm Kent’s first name. It has been updated.
Elon Musk to give talk in Wisconsin ahead of closely watched state Supreme Court contest: 'Super important'
Dangerous fungus spreading in US hospitals has ‘rapidly increased'
Broadway actress faces criticism for reading national anthem lyrics from phone during performance before game
ClickFix malware tricks you into infecting your own Windows PC
Trump executive order targets the Smithsonian over 'divisive, race-centered ideology'
-
News1 week agoVance to Lead G.O.P. Fund-Raising, an Apparent First for a Vice President
-
News1 week agoTrump Administration Ends Tracking of Kidnapped Ukrainian Children in Russia
-
Business1 week agoEgg Prices Have Dropped, Though You May Not Have Noticed
-
Technology1 week agoChip race: Microsoft, Meta, Google, and Nvidia battle it out for AI chip supremacy
-
World1 week agoCommission warns Alphabet and Apple they're breaking EU digital rules
-
News1 week agoTrump’s Ending of Hunter Biden’s Security Detail Raises Questions About Who Gets Protection
-
News1 week agoZelenskyy says he plans to discuss Ukraine ceasefire violations in a call with Trump
-
Movie Reviews1 week ago‘Novocaine’ Movie Review – InBetweenDrafts