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PARENTAL LEAVE
Federal workers would be given four weeks of paid parental leave under a bill Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., introduced Monday.
"As the nation's largest employer, the federal government should be the leader in workplace policy," Webb said on the Senate floor. "Although, the federal government cannot compete with private-sector salaries, we should offer comparable benefits."
The federal government employs 2.7 million people - 100,000 of whom live in Virginia.
Current law allows federal workers 12 weeks of unpaid leave.
Sen. John Warner, R-Va., is a co-sponsor of the bill, known as The Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2008. The House passed a similar bill Thursday.
FUELING FOOD PRICES
Reps. Jim Moran, D-8th, and Tom Davis, R-11th, joined 56 House colleagues Wednesday in recommending the U.S. stop producing corn-based ethanol gas in order to bring down rising food prices.
In a letter sent to the Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday, the bipartisan lawmakers asked the agency to transition away from biofuels that "divert food and feed from domestic and international supplies."
"The unprecedented price of corn is having a ripple effect on food prices directly impacting consumers at the grocery store," Moran said in a statement.
The EPA is studying the impact of renewable fuels on the economy and environment.
"Our current ethanol policies not only are rife with unintended consequences, they have not helped ease our growing fuel demands," Davis said in a statement. "The transition to cellulosic ethanol is a common-sense, necessary step which must begin as soon as possible."
OIL DRILLING
Rep. Eric Cantor, R-7th, lent his support Tuesday to new Republican calls for off-shore oil exploration.
The day after Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain announced his support for ending a federal ban on the ocean drilling, Cantor went on MSNBC to discuss the need for more domestic oil production.
"It's a realization we need to drill here and drill now to pay less at the pump," Cantor said. "We can send a signal to the global markets that we're serious in this country and that we aren't going to be the only oil-producing country that puts off-limits such a significant portion of our energy resources."
Deep water energy exploration could bring the Virginia economy $250 million per year for 40 years, Cantor said.
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Seeking to raise congressional awareness about human trafficking, Rep. Thelma Drake, R-2nd, hosted a briefing Wednesday on U.S. efforts to prevent people from falling into traps of international slavery.
"It's absolutely unbelievable," Drake said. "Often times, even law enforcement doesn't recognize this is trafficking, and people are treated as if they are illegal aliens instead of victims."
Drake, co-chair of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus, convened the meeting to bring together governmental and non-profit groups who work on the issue. Traffickers often lure victims through promises of new jobs or opportunities in foreign countries. Victims' advocates want more pressure put on governments to identify, shelter, and provide services for victims.
NEW STAFF
From the Air Force and commercial airlines, pilot Steven Stampley has landed in Rep. Rob Wittman's office as the freshman lawmaker's new communications director.
Stampley, 28, a native of Charleston, S.C., served in two House offices and most recently worked as a communications manager for JetBlue in New York. But, he said, he missed the thrill of Capitol Hill.
"It's a lot of excitement," Stampley said of Wittman's office. "This is sort of getting in on the ground floor." Wittman, R-1st, was elected in a special election in 2007.
Stampley, an Air Force reservist, flew C-17 planes in the Iraq war in the winter of 2006 and 2007.
--Neil Simon
Federal workers would be given four weeks of paid parental leave under a bill Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., introduced Monday.
"As the nation's largest employer, the federal government should be the leader in workplace policy," Webb said on the Senate floor. "Although, the federal government cannot compete with private-sector salaries, we should offer comparable benefits."
The federal government employs 2.7 million people - 100,000 of whom live in Virginia.
Current law allows federal workers 12 weeks of unpaid leave.
Sen. John Warner, R-Va., is a co-sponsor of the bill, known as The Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2008. The House passed a similar bill Thursday.
FUELING FOOD PRICES
Reps. Jim Moran, D-8th, and Tom Davis, R-11th, joined 56 House colleagues Wednesday in recommending the U.S. stop producing corn-based ethanol gas in order to bring down rising food prices.
In a letter sent to the Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday, the bipartisan lawmakers asked the agency to transition away from biofuels that "divert food and feed from domestic and international supplies."
"The unprecedented price of corn is having a ripple effect on food prices directly impacting consumers at the grocery store," Moran said in a statement.
The EPA is studying the impact of renewable fuels on the economy and environment.
"Our current ethanol policies not only are rife with unintended consequences, they have not helped ease our growing fuel demands," Davis said in a statement. "The transition to cellulosic ethanol is a common-sense, necessary step which must begin as soon as possible."
OIL DRILLING
Rep. Eric Cantor, R-7th, lent his support Tuesday to new Republican calls for off-shore oil exploration.
The day after Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain announced his support for ending a federal ban on the ocean drilling, Cantor went on MSNBC to discuss the need for more domestic oil production.
"It's a realization we need to drill here and drill now to pay less at the pump," Cantor said. "We can send a signal to the global markets that we're serious in this country and that we aren't going to be the only oil-producing country that puts off-limits such a significant portion of our energy resources."
Deep water energy exploration could bring the Virginia economy $250 million per year for 40 years, Cantor said.
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Seeking to raise congressional awareness about human trafficking, Rep. Thelma Drake, R-2nd, hosted a briefing Wednesday on U.S. efforts to prevent people from falling into traps of international slavery.
"It's absolutely unbelievable," Drake said. "Often times, even law enforcement doesn't recognize this is trafficking, and people are treated as if they are illegal aliens instead of victims."
Drake, co-chair of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus, convened the meeting to bring together governmental and non-profit groups who work on the issue. Traffickers often lure victims through promises of new jobs or opportunities in foreign countries. Victims' advocates want more pressure put on governments to identify, shelter, and provide services for victims.
NEW STAFF
From the Air Force and commercial airlines, pilot Steven Stampley has landed in Rep. Rob Wittman's office as the freshman lawmaker's new communications director.
Stampley, 28, a native of Charleston, S.C., served in two House offices and most recently worked as a communications manager for JetBlue in New York. But, he said, he missed the thrill of Capitol Hill.
"It's a lot of excitement," Stampley said of Wittman's office. "This is sort of getting in on the ground floor." Wittman, R-1st, was elected in a special election in 2007.
Stampley, an Air Force reservist, flew C-17 planes in the Iraq war in the winter of 2006 and 2007.
--Neil Simon