This state thrived under Warner and Kaine, I didn't even like Kaine that much, but McDonnell is showing us what "fiscal conservatism" is all about.
This state thrived under Warner and Kaine, I didn't even like Kaine that much, but McDonnell is showing us what "fiscal conservatism" is all about.
Originally Posted by R13
While I liked Warner ALOT Kaine was every bit as bad as Warner was good IMHO this budget mess is a result of his poor stuardship as much as anything.
IMHO you have to give McDonnell a shot to get things turned around otherwise you are no better than Rush hopeing that the Pres fails
Kaine had problems, saying that if this goes through McDonell has crushed this part of the state.
[img]http://www.gifsoup.com/view7/2505516/brandon-phillips-dugout-dance-o.gif[/img]
Wasn't VA one of only 3 states to see growth last year? And has a pretty low unemployment compared to other states?
I'd bet our "growth" was from fed tax dollars falling out of DC. Stuff like this - both "parties" , makes me think this is why they call'em "parties". If you ain't on the guest list, you might as well have worked. I hope if we get screwed bad, they use a washer.
We'll keep the lights on for you.
Spuds
Our overall unemployment rate is fairly low, but that's because Nova has almost no unemployment and brings down the state rate as a whole. Take away Nova and we actually have a pretty high rate, like 10/12% I think.
[img]http://www.lutte-wrestling.com/old-train2.jpg[/img]
Are you sure it's NOVA bringing it down or us? Seems it'd be the other way around.
And hopefully the VA Senate bill will get approved, it's clearly better, and that's just not partisan talk because the House is GOP controlled. Here's an article on it...
RICHMOND, Feb. 8 -- Lawmakers in Virginia's Senate and House of Delegates offered competing plans Sunday for amending the state's budget, setting the stage for a series of partisan clashes over spending during the final three weeks of the legislative session.
The General Assembly's budget committees approved the revised spending plans without knowing how much larger the $2.9 billion shortfall will be or how much the state will receive from the federal government's economic stimulus package.
"We have done our best with the information that we have in hand, but we know the budget . . . is a work in progress," said Sen. Charles J. Colgan (D-Prince William), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. "We will have to make additional reductions to our revenues and make further spending cuts."
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The biggest disagreement between the Republican-controlled House and Democratic-controlled Senate is how to close the shortfall in the two-year $77 billion spending plan that runs through June 2010.
The House wants to save or raise money by offering early retirement to school employees 50 or older and changing the way the state collects sales tax. It also wants to spend millions more on tourism and on treating mentally retarded individuals at home instead of in institutions.
The Senate wants to save or raise money by accelerating sales-tax collection, diverting funds from the state's smoking-prevention program to offset the escalating cost of Medicaid, increasing the cost of out-of-state tuition at colleges and universities and postponing training schools for new state troopers.
The Senate expanded Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's proposal to release nonviolent offenders early, but the House included no money for that program.
House Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford) said the House Appropriations Committee's proposal succeeded in "balancing the budget without any earmarks, protecting core services to the extent possible and enacting policies that hasten job creation and economic recovery."
Both chambers expect to raise about $36 million during a proposed amnesty from the thousands of Virginians who owe the state $1.4 billion in past-due taxes and want to spend money to keep open two mental health facilities that Kaine recommended closing: the Southeastern Virginia Training Center in Hampton Roads and the Commonwealth Center for Children and Adolescents in Stanton.
Neither chamber's budget includes Kaine's proposal to raise the tax on cigarettes, and the House and Senate set aside millions of dollars for further revenue reductions.
"The governor and his team will look at the budget they send to him and give it careful consideration," said Gordon Hickey, Kaine's spokesman.
The full House and Senate will approve a budget this week. A handful of negotiators from both chambers will meet to hash out a compromise before the 45-day legislative session is scheduled to end Feb. 28.
State legislators from both parties say they estimate that the shortfall will be $3.3 billion or more.
Kaine (D) told city and county officials last week that January's income taxes, the second-largest source of state general funds, are far below projections. He said he will revise his estimate next week.
Senate Majority Leader Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax) said legislators might want to consider ways to raise money in addition to the budget cuts. "If we go down a whole lot more than we are today, there are going to be a lot of areas of this state that are going to look like a nuclear war hit it," he said.
The state already has started to eliminate thousands of jobs, slash agency spending by 15 percent and trim almost $1 billion from K-12 education and Medicaid, which helps cover medical needs for the indigent, elderly and disabled.
The state could receive $5.8 billion from the federal government's economic stimulus package, but much of it would have to be spent on targeted areas, including education, transportation and Medicaid. Legislators estimate that $1.5 billion could be used to offset the budget shortfall.
Kaine said last week that the stimulus package should provide the state with more money than the shortfall. "But because we are not out of the woods yet with the economy, I would not suggest that we view the stimulus package as something that should make us breathe a sigh of relief," he said.
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RICHMOND, Va. — The Senate has proposed a budget that restores funding for education, free medical services and law enforcement by contributing less than expected into the state employee and teacher retirement fund.
The Senate Finance Committee’s spending plan announced today borrows several revenue-generating ideas from Gov. Bob McDonnell’s plan to cut $2 billion from the budget, but it restores many of the cuts he proposed.
The Senate would cut public education $133 million, instead of the more than $730 million McDonnell suggested. It also restores funding to free clinics, community health centers and dental services for the poor.
State employees would have three furlough days in each of the next years, instead of five, and would receive a 3 percent bonus in December 2011.
Va. Senate's budget plan restores education, medical funding | Richmond Times-Dispatch
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