Delegate Keith Hodges updates county on 2024 General Assembly priorities affecting rural communities

Delegate Keith Hodges, now representing the redrawn 68th district, addressed the King and Queen County Board on priorities from the 2024 General Assembly session and issues affecting rural localities.

Hodges outlined attempts to modernize the Commonwealth’s revenue system and efforts to secure additional funding for K–12 construction and compensation, state‑supported local employees, public libraries, water improvement funds and mental and behavioral health services. He also said the legislature continues to focus on rural‑urban distinctions in flooding, resiliency and economic development, and noted ongoing attention to a Blue Catfish project, dredging and spoils reuse, and solar siting and decommissioning regulations. Hodges called for continued awareness of rural health‑care pressures.

The update was delivered as informational context; the board did not take action on these items during the meeting. Chairman Simpkins later referenced a statistic — that 76% of Middle Peninsula residents commute out of the area — when offering closing comments about local commuting patterns.