Bullying represented about 43 percent of the total incidents against students in Virginia public schools last year, state officials say. They said bullying has a range of negative effects on students’ learning and health.

Fewer children are dying from accidents in Virginia and across the country, according to reports issued by state officials and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The death rate from unintentional injuries for Virginians age 19 and younger fell 45 percent from 2000 to 2009, new figures showed.

During their recent session, Virginia legislators spent a surprising amount of time dealing with mundane matters – like telling slackers in four localities to mow their lawns. In Virginia, it takes a state law for local governments to order residents to cut their grass or remove trash from their property. That’s because Virginia follows a legal doctrine called the Dillon Rule.

A state legislator wants to make it easier for Virginians who can’t go to the polls on Election Day to obtain an absentee ballot. Sen. John C. Miller, D-Newport News, has proposed that voters be able to request and receive an absentee ballot by email. They still would have to return the completed absentee ballot by regular mail or by hand.

Hundreds of citizens gathered at Virginia Commonwealth University last week for a demonstration in honor of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teenager whose killing has prompted a national debate over guns and self-defense laws.

Why are bar and restaurant owners frowning when it comes to advertising “happy hour” specials? Because in the age of Twitter and Facebook, Virginia law prohibits advertising drink specials using social media. Drinking establishments can legally sell alcohol at lower prices until 9 p.m. The problem is, they aren’t allowed to advertise that fact in the media – not even on the Internet or with social media.

Legislators and medical experts are concerned about the rising use of synthetic drugs known as “bath salts,” which cause a cocaine-like high – and in rare instances can cause death.

Five years after Virginia Tech made campus safety the focus of lawmakers across the nation, the school seems to be shying away from the issue during this year’s General Assembly session. While Virginia Commonwealth University student groups made campus safety an explicit priority at their “Rams Day on the Hill,” students attending “Hokie Day 2012” on behalf of Virginia Tech were hesitant to say the school was focusing on anything except higher education funding.

Gov. Bob McDonnell and several legislators have proposed repealing Virginia’s so-called “Kings Dominion law,” which prohibits public schools from opening before Labor Day unless they obtain a waiver from the state.