The following stories have been hand-selected by the Assignment Desk at News4:
Kaine Announces Cuts to Facilities, Jobs, Colleges
Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced Tuesday that the state will close three correctional facilities; eliminate 929 positions, including 593 through layoffs; and trim as much as 15 percent from colleges and universities to make up for a $1.5 billion shortfall. Kaine (D) has not proposed any tax increase and will minimize cuts to K-12 education and aid to local governments, but he is cutting millions from state agencies. State employees must take a one-day furlough next year. (Washington Post)
Taxpayer March Expects Big Draw
Tens of thousands of demonstrators are expected to descend upon the nation's capital next weekend to voice their concerns about what they call Congress' "nonstop tax-and-spend agenda" in the first-ever Taxpayer March on D.C. The three-day event will begin Thursday morning at the D.C. Armory in Southeast Washington and is expected to end Saturday with a march from Freedom Plaza down Pennsylvania Avenue to a rally on the U.S. Capitol steps. (Washington Times)
Senators Sound Alarm on the Threat of WMD
Sens. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) on Tuesday used the pending eighth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to begin their push for a Senate bill boosting the country’s readiness for a second strike. Lieberman described the Weapons of Mass Destruction Prevention and Preparedness Act of 2009 as the best way to ensure the lives lost in the 2001 attack were not in vain. He also noted that the country’s “margin of safety is shrinking, not growing.” (The Hill)
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Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
Demand Grows for Smaller Homes
For the first time in nearly 14 years, the median size of a new single-family home decreased, to 2,215 square feet last year from 2,277 square feet in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Since 1991, houses for single families have been consistently getting bigger and bigger, mirroring the housing bubble and good economic conditions. (Baltimore Sun)
Animal Rescue Having Hard Time
This economy is sparing no one. Not even animals. Nonprofits and animal rescue groups are taking a big hit during this economy. Donations and adoptions are at an all-time low and pet drop-offs are skyrocketing. "At the pound, we've been hearing about older people turning in their dogs and cats because they can no longer feed them," said Arlene Mills, treasurer of the Humane Society of Caroline County. (Fredericksburg.com)
