Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell will unveil a two-year state budget next week that would increase spending on education and transportation, take steps to stabilize the state’s underfunded pension system and do it all without a tax increase. The spending plan aims to lay the foundation for the state’s emergence from the recession to better fiscal footing, but it will also help shore up the Republican governor’s resume at a time when his political profile is rising on the national scene.
And it comes at a critical juncture in McDonnell’s one and only term.
“The third year matters the most for a governor in Virginia,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a Virginia politics expert at George Mason University. “At this point, a governor has had some experience with the legislature and still has some credibility with lawmakers. Year four, everyone is worried about getting re-elected and who the next governor is going to be.
| Related |
|
|
“And because Virginia governors can only serve one consecutive term,” he said, “year three is when they take looking for another job very seriously.”
The last four governors of Virginia all sought higher office.
McDonnell made a series of populist promises last week ahead of Monday’s budget address, including promising millions of dollars more for higher education, billions for an underfunded pension system and an increase in transportation funding through a shifting of existing sales tax revenues. He also said K-12 education funding would increase.
| Gov. Bob McDonnell will unveil his 2012-14 budget Monday that includes: |
| -$2.2 billion in state and local funds to the state workers and teachers retirement system. |
| -$100 million more for higher education tied to performance measures and new learning standards. |
| -Raising the transportation fund’s share of the sales tax from 0.5 percent to 0.75 percent. |
| -An undisclosed increase in funding for K-12 education. |
| -About $80 million in bonuses for state employees if they can identify $160 million in savings. |
It’s how the governor will fund those expensive measures that worries Democrats.
“He’s right to make transportation a focus; he’s wrong to take money from other places to pay for transportation,” said Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, who McDonnell defeated for governor in 2009. “I think we all know the budget this year is going to be tight. The question is: where do we tighten the belt?”
McDonnell asked most state agencies in September to prepare for cuts of 2 percent, 4 percent and 6 percent in anticipation of a budget shortfall between $500 million and $1 billion. Recommendations ranged from closing state facilities and eliminating positions to ending social services for seniors and cutting funding for local jails. A 6 percent across-the-board cut would save the state $442 million and result in 223 layoffs.
“A lot of the groups expect this to be a catchup budget because we’ve run a very slight surplus [the past two years], but I just don’t think there will be a lot of catchup,” said House Majority Leader and Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights. “We’re going to try to keep a structural balance and not start any new programs.”
| Examiner Archives |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
McDonnell told state workers last week that his budget includes a 3 percent bonus for them next December if they can help identify $160 million in savings. He also said he wants state workers to contribute more to their pensions. He likes the idea of creating a 401(k)-style defined contribution retirement plan, but won’t include such a proposal in his budget.
McDonnell’s budget, however, is likely to contain cuts to services and programs that are sure to draw sharp criticism.
“Not every decision in the budget is going to be a cause for celebration,” McDonnell said.
