News Brief – Feb. 2021

Eagle News:

In-person school dates have been pushed back once again for middle and high school aged students and these are the updated days. Freshman will be going back March 1 and 2. In person learning for grades seven and eight will begin March 8 and 9. The remaining high school students will go back March 11 and 12. Another update to the schedule is “Wellness Wednesday.” Wellness Wednesday will give students a break in the middle of the week from online classes for independent study and will allow for time for the school to be cleaned mid-week. 

State News:

The state cleared the final hurdle to raise the hourly minimum wage which will go into effect on May 1. The minimum wage increase was originally scheduled to go into effect on Jan.1, but Governor Northam amended the bill to delay until May 1 to give employers four more months to recover from the economic impact of Covid-19. 

The hourly minimum wage will increase to $9.50 on May 1, to $11.00 on Jan. 1, 2022, and then to $12.00 on Jan. 1, 2023. The minimum wage will continue to steadily increase over the next few years until it reaches $15.00 an hour. 

National News:

 Donald Trump was impeached for the second time after being accused of inviting a mob to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6. Trump’s second impeachment was not successful, and he was acquitted. The Senate voted 43 not guilty to 57 to guilty, when they would have needed 67 guilty votes to convict. The Democrats began calling witnesses, but it was going to be difficult to get enough Republicans on board, so instead, they got a written statement and moved forward in Trump’s acquittal. 

Biden’s plans as president are moving forward now that the trial is over, but Trump being acquitted gives him the opportunity to hold future political positions, which he would have been blocked from holding if found guilty. 

Biden has continued pushing his Covid-19 relief package and administering vaccinations. He recently tweeted that 50 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered since he took office last month.