Bacon's Rebellion

  • Harrisonburg Can Do Better

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Joe Fitzgerald

    Someone once described GM’s Vega as a vehicle completely unencumbered by the engineering process. And then there was the country mechanic who once suggested to the driver of a Vega that they fix a particular problem by jacking up the radiator cap and driving a new car in underneath it.

    We’ll get back to that.

    There are a number of issues with the current Harrisonburg City Council. Many of them nest under the umbrella of Proverbs 29:18. “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

    It is not clear who’s driving and where they’re going. Another way of looking at it, as several dozen people have agreed in the past three years, is that the city is headed in the wrong direction.

    “We expect certain things of government, and somebody has to make those things work.”

    (more…)

  • Death and Taxes

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    James A. Bacon

    Portrait of Benjamin Franklin with a serious expression, featuring his distinctive gray hair and clothing with a light background.

    by David Saunders

    Welcome to 2026!

    You’ll be getting a W-2 from your employer soon in the mail. It’s an annual reminder of what you made and what the government took in taxes. You might owe the IRS (like me) or you might get a refund (like many), but either way it’s still sobering to think how much we have to fork over for the privilege of being a citizen.

    The biggest line item is federal income tax. You’ll also see deductions for payroll taxes for like Social Security and Medicare, quietly withheld every pay period. It is mysteriously labeled FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) and trust me it’s not a contribution… it’s a tax.

    Then there’s state income tax, where the Commonwealth’s top rate of 5.75% isn’t especially low or high, but it’s another layer on the stack. (Expect this to go up in the next 4 years)

    Next comes sales tax. Every little thing you buy, every Amazon order, every trip to the store, is subject to sales tax. Virginia’s combined state and local rate averages just under six percent, but some localities add much, much more like Richmond’s hot meals tax – where you pay 13.8% to eat out. In some areas you pay higher rates for transportation, hotel stays, admissions to events, or extra tax if you own a business. BPOL Tax (Business Professional & Licensing Tax) was adopted after 1812 to pay for the war of 1812 – and it never went away.

    (more…)

  • One Commission to Rule Energy and In the Darkness Bind Us

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    Steve Haner

    by Steve Haner

    Del. Terry Kilgore, patron of HB 633

    A legislative commission created in 2008 to oversee one narrow function of two electric utilities is about to expand its scope of oversight of all forms of energy in Virginia, including nuclear, coal, and natural gas. It will be the legislative counterpart – and counterweight – to the politically independent State Corporation Commission. 

    The bill to accomplish that (House Bill 633) qualifies as one of the most sweeping and dangerous pieces of legislation pending at the 2026 General Assembly, and that is saying something when one reads the other bills that have been filed. Adding a touch of irony, the patron of the bill granting such sweeping power to legislative Democrats is the Republican House Minority Leader, and he hails from the heart of coal country.  

    The bill abolishes the long-standing Virginia Coal and Energy Commission he serves on, which admittedly had been inactive in recent years, and transfers its role to this group. The name changes from the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation (CEUR) to the Energy Commission of Virginia (ECV). The first provision of the ECV’s powers in the new bill directs it to:  

    Examine the production, transmission, distribution, storage, and use of energy in the Commonwealth, including energy efficiency and conservation, as part of monitoring the development and implementation of the Energy Policy of the Commonwealth (§ 45.2-1705 et seq.) and the Virginia Energy Plan (§ 45.2-1710 et seq.).  

    The energy policy it references in the Code of Virginia could not be more committed to the mission of abolishing hydrocarbon energy in every sector of the economy, not just the electricity industry. Its overriding policy principles include: “Climate change is an urgent and pressing challenge for the Commonwealth. Swift decarbonization and a transition to clean energy are required to meet the urgency of the challenge…” 

    (more…)

  • Virginia’s New Immigration Enforcement Policies

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    James A. Bacon

    From Governor Abigail Spanberger’s Executive Order No. 10 taking the state police out of immigration-law enforcement:

    Ensuring public safety in Virginia requires state and local law enforcement to be focused on their core responsibilities of investigating and deterring criminal activity, staffing jails, and community engagement. Since 2025, Virginians have been deprived of critical public safety resources due to the directives in Executive Order No. 47 (2025) that require and encourage state and local law enforcement to divert their limited resources for use in enforcing federal civil immigration laws. Federal authorities should enforce federal civil immigration laws—law enforcement in the Commonwealth should prioritize the safety and security of all residents in Virginia, the enforcement of local and state laws, and coordination with federal entities on criminal matters.

    From Attorney General Jay Jones day one “Actions to Keep Virginians Safe, Lower Costs, and Protect Fundamental Rights.”

    Protecting Our Communities: I am directing my team to review my predecessor’s opinion regarding United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers and develop clear guidance that balances public safety and trust between communities and law enforcement as it relates to how our immigration laws are implemented.

  • Congratulations to Governor Spanberger…

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    … and a call for collaboration and principled debate.

    A group of spectators applauding at a formal event, with a focus on a man in a top hat and a woman in a white coat and gloves, both smiling.
    Photo credit: Steve Helber/AP

    by Derrick Max

    Today, the Thomas Jefferson Institute congratulates Governor Abigail Spanberger on her historic inauguration as the 75th governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia — and the first woman in the nearly 250-year history of the Commonwealth to hold this office.

    Her assumption of the governorship marks a milestone in Virginia’s story, one rooted in tradition and as she noted in her inaugural address “represents something profound… the peaceful transfer of power… a cornerstone of our American democratic experiment.” 

    Today’s ceremony was an elaborate and exciting celebration of what is best about Virginia, and marked an historic day that should make all Virginians, regardless of party, proud!

    The Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy (TJI) is dedicated to advancing freedom, opportunity, and prosperity for all Virginians through limited government, free markets, and individual choice. When advancing policies that align with these principles, we stand with Governor Spanberger who rightly noted “our prosperity depends upon union… that our leaders and our fellow Virginians should join in common cause, find common ground, and pursue common purpose — this is the concept at the heart of what it means to be a Commonwealth.”

    (more…)

  • Jeanine’s Memes

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    James A. Bacon

    A person with dark hair and a white coat is holding and setting fire to a photograph of a man while smoking a cigarette. In the background, city lights are visible. A caption above the image discusses a significant feminist revolution.

    See more memes at The Bull Elephant.

  • How An Unelected Army of NGOs Became America’s Fourth Branch of Government

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    James A. Bacon

  • But, of Course, Youngkin Was the One Who Politicized Higher-Ed Governance

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    From the New York Times:

    “The head of the board overseeing the University of Virginia and two other top board members, including a major donor to the school, resigned on Friday under pressure from the state’s incoming Democratic governor, according to two people briefed on the matter and letters obtained by The New York Times. A fourth member said on Saturday that he had also resigned.

    “The resignations came after the new governor, Abigail Spanberger, asked at least five members of the board to step aside as she takes office on Saturday. Ms. Spanberger has not said why she asked the board members to resign, but they were all involved last year when the Justice Department, in an extraordinary use of its power, bullied the university’s president into resigning. After Ms. Spanberger was elected in November, she asked the board to delay naming a replacement, but it went ahead and appointed a new president anyway.

    “Those who submitted resignations on Friday were Rachel Sheridan, the head of the board, known at the University of Virginia as the rector; Porter Wilkinson, the vice rector; and Paul Manning, a board member and major donor who gave $100 million to the university just a few years ago, according to the letters.

    “There are 17 seats on the Board of Visitors, which oversees the school, but before the resignations on Friday, there were only 12 members, all appointed by the outgoing governor, Glenn Youngkin, a Republican.” (Continue reading. New York Times subscription required.)

  • Bills Would Make Virginia State Income Tax Highest in Nation

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Liberty Unyielding Staff

    Bills pending in the Virginia state legislature could raise the state income tax a lot. The bill most likely to pass would increase the state income tax rate from 5.75% to 8% on incomes over $600,000 and 10% on incomes over $1,000,000. Another bill would impose an additional 3.8% tax (a “net investment income tax”) on most income above $500,000.

    If both bills pass, Virginia would have a 13.8% tax rate. That would be higher than what is currently the highest state tax rate in America, the 13.3% rate in California for households with million-dollar incomes. It would be far higher than the top tax rates in the region around Virginia, such as the 3.99% tax rate in North Carolina, the 4.82% rate in West Virginia, and the zero percent tax rate in Tennessee, which has no state income tax.

    The bill most likely to pass is HB 979, introduced by Delegate Vivian Watts, D-Fairfax, the powerful chair of the Finance Committee in Virginia’s House of Delegates. HB 979 “establishes two new tax brackets beginning on and after January 1, 2027, that tax income in excess of $600,000 but not in excess of $1,000,000 at a rate of eight percent and income in excess of $1,000,000 at a rate of 10 percent.”

    “Something like this has an excellent chance of passing now,” said a Virginian who spent years lobbying Virginia legislators about tax and other issues.

    (more…)

  • Bacon Meme of the Week

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A plate with crispy bacon strips and text overlay that reads 'Life is uncertain. Eat bacon today.'

  • They’re Baaaack!

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Kerry Dougherty

    I can’t be the only Virginian experiencing a form of PTSD after two days of the all-Democrat General Assembly session.

    It’s as if the loathsome Ralph Northam was running the show again. You know, the guy who closed churches, masked toddlers and supported infanticide.

    Despite all their talk about “affordability” – the new left-wing catchword for supposedly rolling back the high prices the Biden administration brought us – Virginia’s Dems immediately launched their radical plans.

    Job one for the Democrats – HJ1 – is to enshrine a right to kill unborn children in Virginia, with essentially no restrictions. Oh, there’s some vague language about the 3rd trimester, but they’ll be killing babies right up until they draw their first breath in the Old Dominion once this passes.

    Virginia will be an abortion destination for women from all over the South who live in states where the legislators respect life. Continue reading.

  • The “Targeted Relief” That Missed the Target

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Jon Baliles

    For years we have heard the city needs more affordable housing. For years we have heard that cutting the real estate tax rate only helps the rich. And for years, anytime someone brings up the discussion about offering relief to everyone, the conversation turns to the need for “targeted relief.”

    When the tax rate was being discussed in the Fall of 2024, the Stoney administration promised such relief when they announced the “Gap Grant” program, which ostensibly was going to offer up to $200 per month for six months to those who qualified and spent more than 30% of their income on housing. This was less about providing assistance and more of a diversion away from the discussion about reducing the tax rate. It succeeded in convincing Council not to lower the rate and for over a year now, no one seemed to want to try and make the new program work.

    And guess what? It didn’t.

    Even for a gimmicky program, Gap Grant was allocated $3.9 million that would have offered some (temporary) relief to those who met the criteria; but the city didn’t even try to seem to make the program want to work. The Avula administration could have picked it up and run with it, but instead, let it founder. In October, Graham Moomaw at The Richmonder reported that only $20,400 had been disbursed and the city had processed just 22 applications out of more than 2,300 received (around 1,100 were denied for various reasons).

    The city’s new Finance Director said there had only been one staffer handling the paper applications but three people had been hired part-time to get through the backlog. At that time, the city said they would continue the program until the money was gone and then decide whether or not to fund it again. The Avula administration also said they would provide an update on the program within 60 days.

    But they didn’t.

    (more…)

  • Youngkin (Tries to) Take the Money and Run

    Posted on

    by

    Todd Truitt

    An array of one dollar bills scattered on a surface.

    The federal tax-credit scholarship program isn’t open yet, but Virginia’s already in line.

    by Chad Aldeman

    Republican Glenn Youngkin will leave office as governor of Virginia later this month. To his credit, he spent a lot of his tenure pushing for higher standards for public education. He revised the state’s accountability system to bring more transparency and urgency to school ratings. And he raised the state’s cut scores in the name of closing the “Honesty Gap” between state tests and true content proficiency.

    But on January 1st, Youngkin did one more thing: He attempted to make Virginia the first state to opt in to the new federal tax-credit scholarship program created in last year’s tax bill. I use the word “attempted” here though, because his letter to the U.S. Treasury Department is not binding. In fact, the Treasury is currently in the midst of a regulatory process to define the parameters of the new program.

    Why did Youngkin’s team decide to do this on their way out the door? My hunch is it was a political move to try to trap incoming Democrat Abigail Spanberger into eventually joining the program. But I don’t think it will work, and it could even backfire. (more…)

  • 2026’s Power Word: Affordable

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    by Derrick A. Max

    Derrick A. Max

    “Affordability” has become the most powerful word in modern politics – and nowhere more than here in Virginia. Candidates promised “affordable housing,” “affordable health care,” “affordable energy,” and “affordable childcare,” often without defining what affordability means or acknowledging the tradeoffs required to achieve it. Now in office, the progressives in the General Assembly have even crafted a slick video to show their commitment to the “affordability agenda.” No doubt, Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger will repeat the call for affordability frequently in her inaugural address tomorrow.   

    What is lost in this discussion is that from an economic perspective, affordability is not a universal outcome that can be mandated by law. It is a relative condition that always raises a critical question: affordable for whom, at what cost, and paid for by whom? 

    Consider the minimum wage. Raising it may increase take-home pay for some workers who keep their jobs, potentially making life more affordable for them. But economic reality does not allow higher wages to appear without consequence. Employers respond by cutting hours, reducing hiring, replacing workers with automation, or raising prices. For the worker who loses a job, affordability collapses entirely. For workers who get their hours cut back, affordability is cut.  For low-income families facing higher prices at the grocery store, restaurant, or Walmart, affordability is reduced, not improved. The policy creates winners and losers, despite politicians speaking as if everyone wins. They don’t. 

    (more…)

  • The Fine Art of Gerrymandering

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    What might a 10-to-1 Virginia congressional map look like? Chaz Nuttycomb, president of State Navigate, gives it a shot:

    Political map of Virginia showing various electoral districts in different colors.
    Source: (21) Home / X

    So much for congressional districts representing natural communities of interest.

Now Available

Book cover of 'Dust Mites: A Second American Revolution' by James A. Bacon, featuring astronauts planting a flag with a blue and white emblem on a lunar landscape, with Earth visible in the background.
For sale on Amazon.com

The year: 2075. The American colonies on the Moon are getting restless under Washington’s tyrannical rule….

This second edition of “Dust Mites” has a snazzy new cover, includes helpful lunar maps, and is 5,000 words tighter than the original. The sequel, “Trogs,” is scheduled for publication this summer.

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Bacon’s Rebellion is Virginia’s leading politically non-aligned portal for news, opinions and analysis about state, regional and local public policy. Read more about us here.

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