Daily Press Editorial - Other Voices: Stakes High in Budget Debate

Daily Press (Newport News, VA)
April 5, 2004 Monday FINAL EDITION

HEADLINE: OTHER VOICES: STAKES HIGH IN BUDGET DEBATE

BYLINE: MARK WARNER

BODY:
The commonwealth of Virginia has entered uncharted territory. The General Assembly has failed to pass a budget for the 2005-2006 biennium, which is an unprecedented event for our commonwealth. But despite the rhetorical tone, individual legislators are increasingly indicating to me that there is a willingness to reach compromise. I want to report to you that I believe this problem will be solved, and I have great faith that we will enact a budget in Virginia that returns the state to a bright fiscal future.

It is my fervent hope that the General Assembly will reach agreement sooner rather than later. But the cost of inaction-or inadequate action-is so high that we must stay the course in Richmond and fight for a real, long-term solution.

Throughout the regular General Assembly session and since its conclusion, I have had countless meetings with legislators. I have been traveling throughout Virginia to share my concerns about the legislature's failure to adopt a responsible budget, and to hear the concerns of Virginians.

In my travels and in town hall meetings held by legislators, we have heard repeatedly from local city council members, supervisors, sheriffs and other local leaders that the state's failure to enact a responsible budget in a timely fashion has grave consequences for local governments. I say "responsible budget" because the current House budget proposal does not meet the needs in public safety, fund teacher pay raises or help keep our local property taxes from rising. The House budget does almost nothing to make our tax code more fair and keep the tax relief promises that were debated so vigorously before in Richmond.

Additionally, Virginians are turning out in overwhelming numbers to ask their legislators to invest in our shared future. Virginians understand how we got here.

Virginia struggled through a recession in the early 1990s without increasing taxes. In the late 1990s, Virginia promised tax relief to various groups, passing 50 different tax breaks totaling more than $1.5 billion a year. Virginia was able to avoid revenue shortfalls through the decade because of the booming economy. But through legislation we enacted last year, Virginia now has a six-year projection of expected revenues and spending commitments. That projection clearly shows ongoing shortfalls each year through the end of the decade. My introduced budget does not quite fill the gap, as I believe we must keep the pressure on our government reforms to continue to achieve sizeable annual savings. But we must increase revenues to responsibly fund services our citizens expect, even with those annual savings.

The plan that I put forward before last Thanksgiving is fair, pays the bills, protects our AAA bond rating, and makes the necessary investments in key areas such as education. If passed by the General Assembly, it will provide $1 billion of additional revenue, while cutting taxes for 65 percent of Virginians. My plan lowers income taxes for most Virginians, closes some corporate loopholes, phases out the car tax and reduces the food tax. To provide the resources to strengthen our state's infrastructure, taxes would go up on cigarettes, the sales tax and on the incomes of wealthy Virginians. It is important to remember that no new revenues would be needed if we still had the tax code of the mid-1990s.

Here in Virginia, we have a history of producing responsibly balanced budgets. We have been fortunate to avoid the fates of states like New York and Massachusetts that habitually rely on continuing resolutions. New York has failed for 17 consecutive years to pass a budget on time. Since the House and Senate have different visions of what must happen with the budget, I believe that both bodies must compromise. I have a plan that falls in between the two and urge the legislature to give it serious reconsideration.

Legislators and Virginians share the goal of maintaining some of the best institutions of higher education in the nation, a strong K-12 system that creates economic opportunity throughout Virginia, safe communities, adequate health care that is provided with dignity, and other basic services of our state government. Virginians know we must reach compromise. The stakes in this debate, however, mandate that we cannot compromise our core principles of fiscal responsibility and fairness.

Stay in touch with my office and your legislators. This remains the right fight.

* Warner is governor of Virginia.

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