For most students throughout the region, today’s the first day of school. For many students in Virginia, though, it’s just another week to go to an amusement park.

The Virginia Senate defeated another measure seeking to overturn a 1986 law known as the “King’s Dominion law” that requires schools to not open until after Labor Day to accommodate the tourism industry.

The Virginia Senate again deferred to the commonwealth’s amusement parks in voting against a measure that would allow schools to open before Labor Day.

Why do Virginia’s schools open so late? The answer might surprise you.