Dogwood Daily: FBI arrests men with ties to Nazi group planning on heading to rally

Welcome to today’s edition of the Dogwood Daily. We’ve got a round-up of all of today’s Virginia news coming right up.

But first…

There are 23 African American lawmakers currently serving in the General Assembly. While that number is the higher than most recent years, the record was actually set in 1869 when there were 29 African American lawmakers. WVTF has a more in-depth history of Virginia’s Legislative Black Caucus.

Five things you need to know today …

1. FBI arrests men with ties to Nazi group planning on heading to rally– The FBI arrested three men with weapons who had discussed traveling to Monday’s gun rally at the Capitol. The men are suspected of being part of a neo-Nazi hate group known as The Base and were allegedly discussing attending the rally, in part to start a “race war.” Thousands of protesters are expected at next week’s rally against Democrats’ proposed gun reforms. –The New York Times
   
2. Levine introduces bill allowing localities to set minimum wage– Del. Mark Levine (D-Alexandria-Arlington) introduced a bill that would allow localities to set their own minimum wages, as long as they are higher than the federal government’s minimum. Citing that it was more expensive to live in certain parts of the state than others, he said, “one-size-fits-all is not the way to go.” Levine said that if his bill passed, participation would be voluntary, and towns would not be required to raise their minimum wage. –Inside Nova
   
3. Foster Care Caucus looks to maintain progress– The Foster Care Caucus formed last year after a report found the Department of Social Services was struggling to find foster parents, place children with relatives, and provide proper oversight. Now, in its second session, caucus members say they are looking to improve upon the progress they made last year. In the last session, they secured $3.7 million in additional funding and passed a bill to being reforming the system. This session, they hope to pass several more bills to strengthen foster care reform. –Richmond Times-Dispatch
   
4. Absentee voting set to begin today– Absentee voting for the primary is set to begin today for the 2020 Democratic presidential primary in Virginia. Registered voters can request an absentee ballot before February 25 at the state’s citizen portal. The deadline to vote absentee in-person is February 29. The presidential primary is scheduled for March 3. -Gloucester-Mathews Gazette-Journal
   
5. Northam introduces transportation bill– A transportation bill proposed by Gov. Ralph Northam and General Assembly leaders included several wide-ranging measures. The bill included a 4 cent gas hike, cutting car registration fees and a handheld cell phone ban. As gas tax is a major source of funding, another measure included was a fee on fuel-efficient vehicles to ensure their owners help pay for the roads. -WTOP