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FORT MONROE
Rep. Thelma Drake, R-2nd, released a study of historic Fort Monroe Tuesday - the first step to determining whether the 17th-century Hampton fort should become a national park.
The Army is to vacate the base in 2011 and the property will revert to state ownership. The Fort Monroe Federal Area Development Authority is seeking ways to reuse the site at the tip of the Virginia Peninsula.
"Fort Monroe is a local and national treasure, and we should all work together to see that it is preserved for generations to come," Drake said in a statement.
The report by the National Park Service found the 570-acre property may warrant further study, but not before the development authority completes its preservation plans and determines how it would pay for managing and operating the fort.
FARM ANIMALS
Rep. Jim Moran, D-8th, introduced a bill Thursday to protect farm animals from abuse.
The Farm Animal Cruelty Act would make it a federal offense to, without justification, kill, mutilate, disfigure, torture or intentionally inflict pain or suffering upon an animal raised for food.
Penalties would range from fines of $500 to $100,000 to up to a year in prison.
The bill would also impose penalties on farmers who fail to provide food, water and shelter for animals.
"Abuse and torture are wrong, regardless if it involves a pet or an animal being raised for food," Moran said in a statement. "This legislation will make those who might inflict pain and suffering on living things to think twice."
SHIELD LAW
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., a former journalist, cosponsored a reporter shield bill Tuesday to protect the public's right to information.
The Free Flow of Information Act aims to give journalists the right to keep sources and information secret without fear of intimidation or imprisonment.
Under the bill, civil litigants or prosecutors would have to show they first tried unsuccessfully to get information essential to a case, before a court could subpoena information from a journalist.
The bill would permit courts to compel testimony from reporters when disclosure would prevent imminent and actual harm to national security.
Rep. Rick Boucher, D-9th, is the chief sponsor of the same bill in the House.
--Neil Simon
Rep. Thelma Drake, R-2nd, released a study of historic Fort Monroe Tuesday - the first step to determining whether the 17th-century Hampton fort should become a national park.
The Army is to vacate the base in 2011 and the property will revert to state ownership. The Fort Monroe Federal Area Development Authority is seeking ways to reuse the site at the tip of the Virginia Peninsula.
"Fort Monroe is a local and national treasure, and we should all work together to see that it is preserved for generations to come," Drake said in a statement.
The report by the National Park Service found the 570-acre property may warrant further study, but not before the development authority completes its preservation plans and determines how it would pay for managing and operating the fort.
FARM ANIMALS
Rep. Jim Moran, D-8th, introduced a bill Thursday to protect farm animals from abuse.
The Farm Animal Cruelty Act would make it a federal offense to, without justification, kill, mutilate, disfigure, torture or intentionally inflict pain or suffering upon an animal raised for food.
Penalties would range from fines of $500 to $100,000 to up to a year in prison.
The bill would also impose penalties on farmers who fail to provide food, water and shelter for animals.
"Abuse and torture are wrong, regardless if it involves a pet or an animal being raised for food," Moran said in a statement. "This legislation will make those who might inflict pain and suffering on living things to think twice."
SHIELD LAW
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., a former journalist, cosponsored a reporter shield bill Tuesday to protect the public's right to information.
The Free Flow of Information Act aims to give journalists the right to keep sources and information secret without fear of intimidation or imprisonment.
Under the bill, civil litigants or prosecutors would have to show they first tried unsuccessfully to get information essential to a case, before a court could subpoena information from a journalist.
The bill would permit courts to compel testimony from reporters when disclosure would prevent imminent and actual harm to national security.
Rep. Rick Boucher, D-9th, is the chief sponsor of the same bill in the House.
--Neil Simon