UPDATE: McDonnell proposes deep budget cuts
By JR Hoeft | Wednesday, February 17th, 2010 | Catch-AllThe AP is reporting that Gov. Bob McDonnell will propose deep cuts to public education, health care, and state employee compensation at a news conference to be held at the Capitol today.
According to the AP, McDonnell plans on reducing state employee compensation to the tune of $925 million, nearly $730 million from k-12, and $300 million from the Health and Human Services budget.
The governor is holding a press conference now, but I will have an opportunity to ask him later during an exclusive interview about these cuts.
UPDATE: Governor’s Office issued the following press release:
Governor McDonnell Updates State Revenue Projections; Sends Letter to Legislators Formally Outlining Comprehensive Cost Saving Options for Budget
**Governor’s Budget Letter, Revenue Projections, and Cost Savings Breakdown Attached**
RICHMOND- Governor Bob McDonnell held a morning press conference today to discuss the latest revenue projections for the Commonwealth, and formally present comprehensive cost-saving options for the biennial budget. The Governor shared the strategies with the budget conferees and members of the General Assembly in a letter sent earlier in the morning. The letter captured the ideas given informally to budget committee leaders and staff over the past several weeks through numerous meetings and briefings.
At the press conference the Governor remarked, “We face an historic budget shortfall in the Commonwealth. I served in the House of Delegates for 14 years and as Attorney General, and these budget decisions are among the toughest I have had to make in public service. I know that state services to my fellow Virginians will be adversely affected in the short term. I have witnessed several budget sessions run long, devolving into unproductive fighting that leads to wasted taxpayer dollars and gridlock. And these budgets had issues that pale in comparison to the $4 billion deficit we must make up. We cannot allow that to happen this year. That is why for the past month I, along with my Secretary of Finance Ric Brown and other senior staff members, have been meeting with budget leaders from both parties to identify common ground in our shared goal of passing a balanced budget on time that does not include a tax increase. As this process has moved forward, I have awaited the release of today’s revenue projections prior to making public the cost savings strategies our Administration is advancing. Now, I am committed to helping the legislature finalize adjustments to the budget.”
McDonnell noted, “The proposed biennial budget, introduced by the previous Administration, unfortunately only addressed half of the shortfall facing the Commonwealth. The plan to close the remaining $2 billion through the imposition of a massive new tax increase on Virginians in the middle of a recession is one that was unanimously rejected by the House of Delegates. Now, the legislature must identity the spending reductions that will enable us to balance the budget, while respecting the wallets of our hard-working citizens. In today’s letter I formally laid out a number of proposals to get the budget balanced. Many of these will not be easy. Most of them will require sacrifice. But by coming together to make these tough decisions today, we will position the Commonwealth to be stronger as the economy recovers.”
McDonnell further commented, “I am pleased to report that the updated revenue numbers from the Department of Taxation project a slight increase in incoming revenue for the year ahead. I have made a conservative estimate of increased revenue based on the new information. I will encourage the General Assembly to put this additional revenue towards K-12 public education, employee compensation or other core services. Finally, in the cost saving strategies recommended to the legislature, I am calling for a restoration of some of the proposed cuts to public safety and no further cuts to higher education. Tough times call for setting priorities. Public safety and higher education have been cut significantly in recent years and cannot sustain further reductions.”
He concluded, “This is a time that requires strong leadership from the public and private sector to endure these difficult reductions. In the coming months, I will continue to focus great attention on creating jobs and economic opportunity and strategically reorganizing state government, to generate more revenue and reduce spending. This will put Virginia in a stronger position in the years ahead.”
The Governor’s letter, latest state revenue projections, and a breakdown of the Governor’s proposed cost saving strategies are all attached to this press release.
Tags:
Contribute for Conservatism!
Share this post
About the author
Conservative to the core; liberal with his opinion! J.R. has been involved in politics for over a decade and has worked on several campaigns in Hampton Roads. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Chesapeake and the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia. He is also the director of “Blogs United” in Virginia. E-mail J.R.. Follow J.R. on Twitter.
We're 75% there! Thank you to everyone who has so far contributed! Just $2000 to go!
Comments
76 Responses to "UPDATE: McDonnell proposes deep budget cuts"
Yes, the Governor has been missing in this discussion about the budget, preferring to have his delegates and senators actually take the heat for these draconian cuts. For after addressing the nation, and awakening the next day, and upon shaving, looking in the mirror to see the next President of the United States, who would want this man’s hands to get dirty dealing with cuts to programs for children, the elderly, the infirmed, and for cuts to education, parks, libraries, public safety personnel, and of course, public employees. Better to try to sneak them through the Legislature than to actually discuss and debate other remedies. Now I know why delegates and senators were petrified at what they have been forced to do because of the fact that Grover Norquist calls the shots in Virginia.
Wow..Mike doesn’t get an appointment, and he gets vicious!
Yes, only Brian would consider a posting of the facts to be vicious. Of course, the sick, the elderly, the infirmed, children, employees about to be fired and their families, police, fireman, sheriffs, park rangers, librarians, all may consider the cuts to be vicious as well. McDonnell sure ran as a moderate, but when you pay homage to Grover Norquist, that description does not apply.
Rolling back government expenditures to 2006 levels is not exactly Armageddon.
These guys are so predictable. I told a friend last week to wait for this to occur and it just has.
First, Democrats squawk loudly that McDonnell didn’t submit his own budget amendments and were demanding answers from him about where he would cut.
Now that he has indicated where the proposed cuts are, they are squawking about the cuts.
Given that education spending is the largest single item in the budget (usually around 40-percent of it), does it not seem logical that it might bear the largest reduction?
http://dpb.virginia.gov/budget/faq.cfm
Also lost in this discussion is the fact that Tim Kaine created these deficits by basing spending plans on wildly optimistic projections of new revenue — despite repeated warnings that his projections were way too rosy.
How come Democrats always get away with the old “I inherited this mess” argument, while a guy who has been governor all of a month and a day takes all their blame?
Nova Guy, it’s not just the Democrats who we hear “squawking” right now. One would expect that many Republican law enforcement agents, teachers, health providers and patients are seeing stars right now.
Gee Mike, didn’t the Stimulus Bill “save or create” 2 million public sector jobs and to hell with the rest of us? And aren’t these people also supposed to be re- training for “green” jobs?
Playing sympathy poker with public sector jobs isn’t working anymore. There are a lot more of us who don’t have jobs then there are of them. There are also fat pensions that are being paid out to retired public employees which is also a huge drag on the state budget.
It’s about time that politicians are realizing that if we can’t afford it, we don’t need it.
One of the things that I have been learning today in my discussions is that Senate Democrats are, again, asleep at the switch. They have not agreed at all as a caucus as to the direction their proposed budget should go, which is why they have been “squawking” so much about not having a budget from the governor.
Now, they’ll pass an 11th hour budget that has no chance of working its way through the House, we’ll have a mess on our hands, and they’ll blame Republicans? When they’ve given Republicans little to know voice on the committees?
What a shocker.
Just sayin’, but I ain’t liking your graphic too much (gloved hand poised to stab to death, presumably). It’s supposed to signify what? A deranged killer? Surely you could have found a graphic that didn’t equate Bob McDonnell with Norman Bates.
Maybe they should have added knives to HB69?
Relax, Jimmy D. Would you have preferred a picture of Lizzy Borden?
No…we all know that these cuts are tough, and I am not trying to be insensitive or equate McDonnell to being a slasher.
Seriously…cutting spending to the same level as 2006? Is it that bad? I just knew that the image is how he’s going to be portrayed by the left and some in the media…so it’s a bit of parody on my part.
Good article also from Julian Walker of the Pilot:
http://hamptonroads.com/2010/02/mcdonnell-budget-cuts-target-education-health-false-cape-state-park
So mike,
if for a few years the average class size is 21 students per teacher instead of 19… is that a crisis?
State spending, alond with basically every state, exploded from 2002-2005. Even with all these cuts that have alreayd happened and the proposed level, is it such a horror that spending per capita even inr eal terms is brought back to where it was in 2004-2005. Was it the dark ages in Virginia when Warner left office?
Dems adhearence to never cut anything is no different then republicans holding a line on not raising taxes. Donly act like one is “pragmatic” and the other isnt.
During the last recession i lived in Massachusetts and that state budget wise was hit a lot harder than the national average due to the tech industry being so big there. I remeber this exact same debate. Romney won as governor running on his chief issue of balancing the budget without raising taxes, where his opponent wanted to “keep all option on the table.” This is not much different than McDonnell winning over Deeds. There was a $3 billion budget shortfall at the time and the MA has about the same population as Virginia. Allt he dems screamed the horrors that cutting 3 billion would do. And you know what? The budget was balanced without raising taxes and the state survived, and 99% of people didnt even notice a difference. Compare that to Deval Patrick (the current dem governor) who now balanced the budget by lareg sales tax increase and various “luxury taxes”. Hes grossly unpopular now (and this tax riaisng probably contributed to Brown winning there) and it looks like a Republican is going to win backt he governorship in “progressive” Massachusetts. Virginia will survive with cuts and politically McDonnel, and the legistlature as a whole, will be better off doing so than riaisng taxes to close it.
My initial (and permanent) opinion is: Bob McDonnell, have you lost your freaking mind?
I like it as it makes the Va House and Senate take the beating in the next election by all those voters who will be facing reality by the Fall. It will be painful for all most all Virginian’s once the reality gets down to the localities and services.
It is easy to cut somebody else but when you get cut, it becomes reality. Many Bob McD and GOP voters just took a hit but they don’t know it yet. As for service reductions,it is already taking place…
It will be ugly but the voters will get what they voted for in the past election. I can’t wait to hear them cry as I remind them how they voted and got what they wanted. LOL. Nice job Bob!
If McDonnell doesn’t cut, freeze or eliminate, then the creditors who own our debt will force it on us. Just think of the public circus when they start auctioning the Virginia capitol, Governor’s mansion, State Parks and other tangible Virginia assets on the steps of the state capitol to the highest bidder to pay off the debt.
Now that I’ve recovered somewhat from the shock of all the cuts proposed, I submit an article I wrote last evening which I would like to share here.
After listening to the news this evening I had some thoughts that need to be shared. The reason I think they need to be shared is because I cannot in a million years think I am the only person who is questioning and thinking along these lines.
The news segment I am referring to deals with Congress. Specifically, GOP members in the Senate explaining why consistently voting NO to democrat proposals is sending a message to the president. That is countered by the democrats in the House saying it isn’t their fault that nothing can get accomplished because of the lack of cooperation.
I am thinking the entire governing process has jumped into the toilet and pulled the chain behind themselves. What kind of rationale is behind their thinking? Do they truly think that the American citizens are going to allow this behavior to continue? Doesn’t anybody else see the insanity behind the thinking of all the politicians in Washington?
When elected officials appear on national television and tell me they are deliberately being uncooperative with each other to get back their power, I have to say… “Man, you are crazy!” That is not the kind of leadership I want running my country. It is the most frightening thing I have ever heard regarding party control.
Admittedly, I do not know all the ins and outs of government. But, I do know when something sounds un-American to me. And when our politicians tell me that they simply will not work with each other, then I say they all need to be voted out. They are telling me that it doesn’t matter if a bill is good or not. They simply are never going to consider it. They are telling me they don’t care what is best for the people of America, only what is best for their political party.
It doesn’t matter which party is our individual preference. It would seem that the important thing is to find honest, intelligent, thinking people who truly care about America and not just their own self-serving agenda.
After listening to the news this evening I had some thoughts that need to be shared. The reason I think they need to be shared is because I cannot in a million years think I am the only person who is questioning and thinking along these lines.
The news segment I am referring to deals with Congress. Specifically, GOP members in the Senate explaining why consistently voting NO to democrat proposals is sending a message to the president. That is countered by the democrats in the House saying it isn’t their fault that nothing can get accomplished because of the lack of cooperation.
I am thinking the entire governing process has jumped into the toilet and pulled the chain behind themselves. What kind of rationale is behind their thinking? Do they truly think that the American citizens are going to allow this behavior to continue? Doesn’t anybody else see the insanity behind the thinking of all the politicians in Washington?
When elected officials appear on national television and tell me they are deliberately being uncooperative with each other to get back their power, I have to say… “Man, you are crazy!” That is not the kind of leadership I want running my country. It is the most frightening thing I have ever heard regarding party control.
Admittedly, I do not know all the ins and outs of government. But, I do know when something sounds un-American to me. And when our politicians tell me that they simply will not work with each other, then I say they all need to be voted out. They are telling me that it doesn’t matter if a bill is good or not. They simply are never going to consider it. They are telling me they don’t care what is best for the people of America, only what is best for their political party.
It doesn’t matter which party is our individual preference. It would seem that the important thing is to find honest, intelligent, thinking people who truly care about America and not just their own self-serving agenda.
Wait a second, Tim J., you know that is a bit of an exaggeration. Kaine proposed a way to cut, but also to provide a mechanism to avoid these draconian cuts on the sick, the infirmed, the elderly, and the children. Yes, some of us would pay a bit more tax, and as far as I am concerned, it could be a surcharge to be rescinded upon recovery, but that is what should be done. Having Grover Norquist write my state’s budget is sickening to me, and anyone who signs his pledge is to me unqualified to serve the citizens of this Commonwealth.
Mike, the point I was making in my little example is connecting back to what happens to real people when their debt and spending are way ahead of their income. They are foreclosed on, all of their real assets are attached and real estate is auctioned off on the steps of the local courthouse.
Don’t extrapolate your willingness and ability to pay taxes, surcharges, fees and tolls to the rest of us because a lot of us are scraping by and can’t afford it.
A collapse of the state credit rating due to the inability to manage deficits and debt will be the equivalent of a political and fiscal tsunami that will cause far more damage to the underprivileged, age and social programs than the budget proposals which Gov. Mcdonnell is presenting now.
Mike, if McDonnell is Grover, you’re sounding like Oscar the Grouch
Well Tim J., Kaine’s budget was balanced, handled debt just fine, and would have continued the Commonwealth’s coveted tripe A bond rating. So will McDonnell’s. But the difference is that Kaine’s budget would have cut deeply, but would have spared programs that had a disproportionate effect on the most vulnerable in our society. That is the difference; no need to muddle this discussion with what ifs that will not occur.
That tax increase of Kaine’s was a difference, too, wasn’t it? Or did you miss that?
Well Brian, if you would stop forging your next quip, you would have comprehended that I was advocating for a combination of cuts and revenue increases. Of course, as a proponent of no taxes, just like your hero Grover Norquist, Abranoff’s good friend, you would never allow yourself to consider tax increases. I would, and I think that in this situation, on a temporaty basis, that is warranted to prevent the draconian effects on the sick, the homeless, the infirm, the elderly, the young, and the soon to be unemployed. But if an elected official has signed Norquist’s no tax pledge, they owe their loyalty to him, not to the citizens of the Commonwealth. Their hands are tied; I hope voters remember that.
But, Mike. You’re my hero.
Well Brian, how do you assess the local political effect of this tsunami? Fairly amazing that there are these many posts on this topic when in fact the firings that will be necessary in local government and local school systems are only hinted at. That shoe won’t drop until the full implication of the over $750,000,000 cuts in K-12 education are announced, and of course these will be in addition to the cuts already announced as a result of the Kaine budget, and the change in the formula. These cuts will be on top on those, and all those headlines in the Pilot over the last few weeks about impacts did not take these cuts into consideration. How local government officials will react is the next big question, but my assessment is that this shift of costs will be resisted, and finally, even local republican office holders will reverse course and condemn the Governor and the House for their allegiance to Norquist instead of to the citizens of the Commonwealth. So what do you think?
I guess you’ll give the city back the $135,000 then.
No, that money went to Dominion Virginia Power, Cox Communications, and Verizon to pay for the removal of their public utilities in the public right of way that helped to facilitate the construction of a $15,000,000 office building that paid more in real estate taxes than the grant in the first year, and will of course continue to increase in value every year to the great benefit of the tax payers of the city of Virginia Beach. Had the City not supported our request, the project would not have been built, and the increased real estate tax revenue would not have been realized. But hey Brian, thanks for asking; can I expect a thank you note?
a 15 million dollar office building that you couldn’t have built without a measly 135K grant from the city?
Are you that horrible a businessman? A 15 million dollar project hinges on 135K? Remind me never to rely on you for financial management.
Brian, the project depended upon relocation of utilities so we could build on the property line. Had city support and approval been withheld, we would not have been able to build the project. Because we could, we constructed a project that created and/or retained over 200 high paying jobs, and we will pay the aforementioned real estate taxes for decades to come. Had we not built the project when we did, it is quite likely that the tenant would have gone to another city. So the bonus for the city and the taxpayers is an annuity starting at $137,000 and increasing for decades to come. Not a bad investment for us or for them.
Well, down in Blacksburg, where they do the Hokie Pokie, 120 of 134 jobs listed on the Roanoke Times job site are government-funded jobs.
Have a look:
http://job.roanoke.com/careers/jobsearch/results?kAndEntire=Blacksburg
Government funded jobs as in “created with money taken from strapped taxpayers.” I’m sure a Director of Fraternity Life and 2 Professors of Africana are vital to the Commonwealth’s future. But maybe not right now?
So, you had $14,865,000 of $15,000,000 all good to go, and you would’ve failed.
Either you’re pretty poor at finance, or you expect us all to be stupid.
It’s nice that the Governor is sticking to his pledge to not raise taxes (and including fees not tied to specific services in that). But all I see this really doing is shifting the burden to localities. I don’t know about every county. But mine is sure to raise property taxes to make up the difference. So, it won’t even really be the deep cut in spending that some are suggesting.
“Public safety and higher education have been cut significantly in recent years and cannot sustain further reductions.” -Governor McDonnell
Just repeating that quote for Jimmy D. and Mike Barrett who are speaking of draconian cuts to public safety. William didn’t specifically mention public safety in his comments, but he should be one to be glad to know this.
Where were you guys when Kaine was making cuts? And Mike, I’m not sure Grover would have approved HB3202 like your favorite bad guy Governor McDonnell did when he championed it. Moderate Republicans should take note of just how long loyalty lasts after you take their “pragmatic” approach. That knife graphic makes for a fine illustration of “big government” Dems turning on a fiscal moderate when the chips are down and he’s forced to take strong measures to balance the budget with out further crippling the economy.
So, far I have to agree with Bob McDonnell’s assessments. Education has become bloated. Public Safety has indeed already been through the ringer. And yes, big cuts in the short term must be made, and yes, tax increases would harm Virginia further. If Grover Norquist is behind all this, and manipulating the puppet strings on the governor, then to this point his orchestration is pretty darn good.
School vouchers anyone?
There are many private alternatives to government owned and union member managed public institutions that offer a good value for the dollar per student. Why do Democrats oppose vouchers so vehemently? I reject that vouchers are solely a “christian conservative” cause as so many have stated in the past..
Private schools deserve to take a fair share of education spending.. They have to spend wisely due to their lack of government safety nets.. if people had a chance to vote on a rational voucher program for Va schools the fiscal projections for this state would improve further.
I didn’t cover public safety as we all know that Bob’s cuts simply pass the costs off to the local communities to fund and they will cut public safety. We are talking 4.4 billion in cuts not the 2 announced yesterday. The local communities have no choice as they don’t have an option except to raise taxes or pass on the cuts. So while Bob will claim a public safety no cut theme, it is simply false.
IMO: There are not enough public safety employees to meet the community needs today so I can’t guess as to what will happen to the services in the coming two years. Likewise the 611 million Bob claims as a cut for VRS funding has no impact for twenty or thirty years when folks go to retire. However it does hurt the ability to recruit and retain public safety employees on 1 July 2010 so the negatives start right away.
And you can’t tell me that the new employees will provide the same level of service when they have been provided lesser pay and benefits than the current work force. I fear the citizens are on their own and will reap the pain from these actions. Time will tell but I can already see employees who are not as committed to the job and service as they were in prior years. And you get what you pay for. You want minimum cost and you get minimum return and effort. “Working to the contract” is the term they use in the schools and I see that happening all across Virginia as the cuts make their way across the localities and state work force.
Time will tell if my thoughts and projections occur. I don’t see it getting any better.
I didn’t cover public safety as we all know that Bob’s cuts simply pass the costs off to the local communities to fund and they will cut public safety. We are talking 4.4 billion in cuts not the 2 announced yesterday. The local communities have no choice as they don’t have an option except to raise taxes or pass on the cuts. So while Bob will claim a public safety no cut theme, it is simply false.
IMO: There are not enough public safety employees to meet the community needs today so I can’t guess as to what will happen to the services in the coming two years. Likewise the 611 million Bob claims as a cut for VRS funding has no impact for twenty or thirty years when folks go to retire. However it does hurt the ability to recruit and retain public safety employees on 1 July 2010 so the negatives start right away.
And you can’t tell me that the new employees will provide the same level of service when they have been provided lesser pay and benefits than the current work force. I fear the citizens are on their own and will reap the pain from these actions. Time will tell but I can already see employees who are not as committed to the job and service as they were in prior years. And you get what you pay for. You want minimum cost and you get minimum return and effort. “Working to the contract” is the term they use in the schools and I see that happening all across Virginia as the cuts make their way across the localities and state work force.
Time will tell if my thoughts and projections occur. I don’t see it getting any better.
Good luck!
[...] Gov. McDonnell on the budget Today, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced significant budget cuts. In this exclusive with Bearing Drift, McDonnell discusses his rationale on these cuts and his [...]
Now that Governor Norquist has spoken, we know he must be very proud of Bob. Yesterday’s budget announcement, as bad as it was for the state’s most vulnerable citizens, is not the end of it, as the hundreds of millions the Governor has cut in payments to VSRS are a mirage and further draconion cuts must be made as well. “Cut the arms and legs off of government so it can be drowned in a bath tub” is what Governor Norquist has said. Is this enough? Heck no, this is just the beginning. As Mayors and Chairman of school boards ponder the cuts that will be made necessary by “changing the standards of learning” we will soon hear about the necessary job cuts in local government that will be severe and will have a fiscal impact on cities, counties, and towns. Targeting the sick, the infirmed, the elderly, the young, and those who care for those citizens, Norquist/McDonnell have shown what is truly meant by Americans for Tax Reform, and even with these cuts, it will not be enough. Are there any republicans left with a conscience?
I guess the privatization of package stores won’t happen. That would have transferred public jobs to the private sector and incur revenue from bids. We will close a State park (tourist attraction in Virginia Beach) yet reopen rest stops. The rest stops could have become concessions that again would relieve the public payroll and create private sector jobs and taxable revenue and concession fees. There are a myriad of innovative ideas that could raise revenues and reduce spending but our legislature, both Republican and Democrat, are so bent on partisanship, or one legislative body against the other, that they are blinded and ineffectual.
Mike writes: Yes, the Governor has been missing in this discussion about the budget.
Mike, did you even read McDonnell’s statement? He’s been meeting with officials from both parties for weeks. Are you calling him a liar?
Furthermore, your attempts to tie McDonnell to Norquist are hilarious. McDonnell has supported tax increases in the past – during a time of economic growth – for transportation.
Your call for higher taxes – a “surcharge”, I love how you limousine liberals spin words – is not supported by anyone I am aware of in the state Senate. If the Senate Finance Committee wants to pass a budget that includes higher taxes to make sure we don’t cut funding to widows, orphans and the infirmed they can bring that bill to the floor of the Senate for a vote. Let’s see how that goes down.
As someone said on another post – If the Senate Democrats want to draw a line in the sand and say no more cuts, they can shut down the government by refusing to pass a budget with these cuts and take their case for higher statewide taxes to their fellow Virginians. Let’s see how that plays out.
Let Mike play with his Grover.
Gee Laura, when elected Governor of all the people, that did not mean he only talks to committee chairman. He is the Governor of all of us, and on matters of state like the budget, we all need to be in the conversation. And frankly, Laura, I think you should run your comment about supporting higher taxes for transportation by Bob’s guys. I don’t think they will agree with you. And lastly, I hope my and other’s support of the outline of Kaine’s budget gets some traction in the House and the Senate where the effects of these draconian cuts are now on the table for all to see. I think going home tomorrow will be a very uncomfortable situation for delegates and senators of both parties.
Over use of the word “draconian”, wasn’t that the name of the warrior race in the Buck Rogers TV series in the early 80′s?
A couple of posts up, Mike is now calling Grover “Governor” Norquist.
Maybe “Governor” Norquist is a ventriloquist and is the real “Governor” who has his hand up the Governor McDonnell puppet’s back which is the talking head for Grover’s “agenda”?
Britt: Re:draconian cuts in public safety.
Actually, we could use some cuts in wasteful public safety spending. Post-9/11 Virginia, like most other states, had a fear-induced hissy fit and spent millions upgrading security on buildings and people which were never legitimate terrorist targets. We don’t really need this level of secruity at every building that houses state offices, the only effect of which is to make it harder for people to communicate with their government. No terrorists are interested in blowing up Virginia’s Capitol, General Assembly Building or Governor’s Mansion.
Steve, the only people interested in our state offices, Capitol, General Assembly Building and Governor’s Mansion are creditors who are interested in their appraised value.
Yeah, Tim the only violencee at any of those locations in recent years was when Del. Jack Reid shot his office door.
Steve, I could likely agree with you there. I was speaking on a more local level, though. That is, the state funding that assists local public safety.
To William’s point, if our local officials are going to use creative accounting to turn no cuts in public safety to big cuts in public safety, WHY don’t YOU hold the LOCAL government accountable for that? Surely, you’re not suggesting that Beach manager & council have made wise decisions and not created a large deal of the mess they are in. Is this just partisanship on your part?
I guess my point about Grover Norquist is to state that to him, and to those who sign the no tax pledge, no amount of reduction in taxes is ever enough. If the full $4.2 billion dollars is cut this time, next time he will just want another $4.2 billion. Any amount is never enough. The effect of that ideology is well displayed after a decade of following that rule for our transportation infrastructure. What company in their right mind, coming here for a field visit and personally experiencing the condition of our infrastructure, would choose to locate in the Commonwealth? Do you really think the lowest tax rate trumps safe roads and bridges and a functioning system of education?
I make every effort to hold public officials accountable. I would include the City Manager AND his staff in the group. There have been some wise actions taken by City Council in the history of this city. However I would agree they have created the majority of problems that exist.
The funding for public safety in this city has never been adiqute to support the 350 square miles, 435,000 residents and 3.6 million annual visitors. The problem is that most people never call 911, so they do not know the limitations of the current funding and staffing of emergency units. It isn’t till your in the mix that you start to wonder what is happening and why.
Budget cuts have to be made or taxes and fees raised, I would have liked to see a better balance in the mix but Gov Bob didn’t see it my way. So the local cities and councils will have to do the dirty work for him.
Its just a matter of who gets hurt and how badly… Take care.
Yes, the rest of this week is a lull as the cities and counties attempt to make sense of the devastation and put a number to be wrought by the Governor’s recommended budget cuts that will transfer the pain to local budgets. Frankly, few were the least bit prepared, and even it they were, to contemplate the cuts must have been difficult. Soon, we will know how many layoffs will occur across the range of local governmental services; teachers, public safety employees, human service workers, and those who operate the courts and the jails. Further, there is another $500,000,000 that will need to be cut as well as it is unlikely that the “savings” made by failing to contribute the employee share to the VSRS will stand the test of Legislative review. Besides the dastardly effect on the infirmed, the sick, the elderly, and children, the effect on all who believe in civil society with quality services will be severe. Thank you Governor Norquist; just take a pill for that heartburn, you’ll get over it.
Perhaps it would be best to repeat this and make some comments.
I have done an informal poll with my patients for the last couple of weeks.
(1) I asked if they knew what the projected Va budget deficit was. Not a single person knew.
(2) I asked them to guess what the projected deficit was. Most people guessed in the 5 to 10 million dollar range. 100 million was the largest guess.
(3) I told them what the projected deficit was. Everyone was just stunned.
(4)I asked them if they favored increased taxes to cut the deficit. No one wanted higher taxes. In fact they were strongly opposed to higher taxes.
This was an informal poll that I tried. I was not trying to prove anything, just wanted to find out what people were thinking. People were from Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Suffolk. Poll took place in Chesapeake.
I was very surprised with the results.
Questions one, two and three. This indicates to me that most people have no idea at all what is going on in Richmond. When I told people the number, jaw dropping would be another way to describe the reactions.
I really was shocked by the very emotional reaction to tax increases. I did not ask why they opposed tax increases but most people told me. They said that they can barely survive now and can not afford any new taxes. Very emotional and two people were almost crying. Before the poll, I would have been willing to accept some small temporary new taxes. After the poll, NO new taxes.
I would strongly suggest that those of you in favor of new taxes, repeat what I did. Go talk to 5 people you do not know and ask them what I did. Remember that you are trying to find out what they are really thinking so be as neutral as you can. When you are waiting in line somewhere (fast food, grocery store, bank,etc) would work well. Perhaps saying “would you favor some temporary taxes to help decrease part of the state budget deficit” would be an even more neutral question.
I would enjoy hearing your results.
I wouldn’t recommend asking these questions in bars that allow concealed carry. The last thing we need is a deadly mixture of tax talk, booze and guns that stuns and evokes strong emotions in people who have had a few, per some outbursts on previous threads.
Your survey does not surprise me one bit. I agree that folks here by and large are more ignorant of state matters than citizens in other parts of the Commonwealth. A sample of articles and forums in other cities reveals a much higher lever of involvement in matters of the Commonwealth. Secondly, those who do participate here seem to be republicans for whom no tax increases seems to be the adopted mantra. Probably becasue our Delegates have voted that way for the last decade. Lastly, even though most are paying less taxes now than they did a few years ago, they are affected by the national rhetoric. Mob psychology is more like it.
I hate it when I have to agree with Mike. My comments apply to both the Repubs and the Dems who have served so very poorly the citizens of Virginia since 1983. IMO: The nuts have taken over and they are clueless… I look at the VRS issue as one example of the mob approach.
I hear VRS is a “lavish” retirement system the provides “generous” benefits. And I hear it is “unsustainable” in the future. We’ll let’s look at reality. The General Assembly has under funded it since 1983 even thru its own body recommended and set the level of funding.
Generous: The average payout to a Virginia retiree is $22,000 a year which is well below the poverty line. And Now Gov. Bob McD and the General Assembly plan to stop putting funds in it for the next two years to the tune of 500 million dollars. Hello… it is unsustainable because you failed to put the required money in your own plan… It was unsustainable from day 1 when you failed to fund it as necessary. Now you are not going to put the 500 million in and that is going to make it stable and sustainable? The 5% employee payin will not change that issue a single dollar. It is still under funded and it will still fail. LOL Is that sound financial strategy or what?
Now they blame the retirees… I suggest the retirees take the Commonwealth to court over the “irrevocable” decision that the state and localities made in 1983 to fund the employees 5% instead of giving pay raises. I can see how you can change the rules for new employees but current employees have the law on their side. “Irrevocable” was set by the GA and the localities made that decision way back in 1983. I’d like to see how that issue would play out in court.
Again both the R’s and D’s have set the system up to fail so they share the total blame for the crisis facing the VRS system. But the mob approach has set in and I see dumb comments by people who do not know the facts just as was shown in the poll questions in an earlier post. It is like watch Fox or MSNBC news… Nobody in their ight mind listens to those networks unless you mindlessly want to be told what to think…
So somebody tell me is that sound financial planning or a mob approach by dumb people who are setting the system up for financial failure? Even if the employees pay 5% into it, it will still fail due to the failure of the Virginia General Assembly and the Governors’ budget and the 500 million that will not be funded in the short term.
Nuts call it: Generous and lavish, while the VRS system is set up to fail. Talk about a mob mentality… Set up to fail is what VRS has been since the very beginning…
It is just amazing.
William, what’s a pension? Being one of those private sector workers, I don’t get the taxpayers to pay 95% of my retirement plan. I’d love to see what one looks like, since I’m paying for yours.
Brian: This is American and we can be as successful as the amount of work we are willing to do. I work hard for everything I own and have accomplished.
Brian is good for quips, not policy. He is a sycophant, and not worthy of involving in rational discussions. That said, the failure of McDonnell to pay VSRS is simply adding to unfunded liabilities, kind of like Gilmore counting FRANs as new revenue. Tricks of the trade in the hope that most of us are so baffled that we won’t pay attention. But I suspect some of those senior Legislators who expect to be around for longer than McDonnell will make short work of that recommendation, and then we will have another $5-6,000,000,000 to cut from this budget.
FYI: I deleated the harsh comments I made as they didn’t contribute to the value of this subject… Sorry to anyone who may have read them.
“not worthy of involving in rational discussions”
Glad you weren’t around when they wrote that First Amendment, o Earl of Barrett.
Mike: I understand your point. And have to agree…
Brian: I’ve defended your right to be the way you are since I turned 18 years old. Frankly the little bit of money you provide while I protect your freedoms and lifestyle is a great investment for the services I’ve provided you. If you don’t see it that way, I guess you are simply anti-military and anti public safety. I’m the cheapest and best protection that your money can buy and worth every dime.
William-
Not so sure yet what the VRS decision is going to be. According to Sen. Wampler, it’s the D’s that want to get into deferred payment options and the R’s that are looking into more structural and long-term changes.
I have no idea what this means, but I bet we’ll know more on Sunday.
As a person who respects public safety, my only regret in this discussion is that Mr. Kirwin never spent any time in the uniform of his country, state, or municipality. If he did, knowing that his life was at stake over that public defense, perhaps he would think differently about the compensation received for that service.
Sorry, Brian. You know I think the world of you…but you’re wrong here.
Gosh, you two are touchy. I ask a question and your thongs get all tight.
Sure you did. Your question wasn’t meant as a backhanded, sarcastic swipe at all, especially given the point you made following it. No. Brian never tries to score political points by asking a question. Never.
innocent me.
Jr: Thanks. I don’t want anyone to get rich off the taxpayers but the average VRS payout of $22,000 is not worth much after 30 years of serving the taxpayers. It just is not the “lavish” system that it is made out to be…
And Brian will be Brian… I don’t expect he’ll ever change his approach to others until one day he reaches the point were his time on earth is short(in years) and the reality of the entirety of his work hits home. It took me a while to learn that I don’t have to win every battle and not everyone has agree with me. Sometimes it is ok just to let them win one as you sit back and smile.
You all take care and while we may disagree on the politics and budget issues, I appreciate your efforts. Just remember America’s interests must always come before the Party’s. JMO
Yeah, sorry Bill. I don’t have the class to have a decal on my car of someone urinating on another department because they aren’t unionized.
Again you are factually incorrect but I’m going to let it go this time. However next time we happen to run into each other, I’m going to ask you to respond in the same manner you do on this blog. I’m going to bet you have a different type response. I know I will… LOL
The draconian cuts proposed by the Norquist/McDonnell administration have worked exactly as planned; that is, set neighbor against neighbor, race against race, school board against school board, city and county versus city and county, rich and powerful against everyone else, and by fighting amongst ourselves, his efforts to…”cut the arms and legs off of government so it can be drowned in a bath tub..” will succeed. Instead, for all those who have a modicum of charity left in their character, the effort ought to be focused on convincing our delegates and senators that there is another way, that we will agree to a temporary surcharge on the income tax to prevent this latest round of hurtful cuts, aimed at the poor, the sick, the elderly, the disabled, children, and those who care for them, so that we can look ourselves in the mirror and not get ill at what we see.
sigh…..yawn….
Mike. The overwhelming majority of citizens still oppose tax cuts.
Mike, you are cutting and pasting your previous posts and your credibility is now suspect.
Please don’t get boring on us because we used to think you had a point of view and to repeat these same posts is a sure thread killer.
[...] State Budget Comments [14] E-Mail ThisDigg it!Facebook Today, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced significant budget cuts. In this exclusive with Bearing Drift, McDonnell discusses his rationale on these cuts and his [...]
[...] State Budget Comments [14] E-Mail ThisDigg it!Facebook Today, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced significant budget cuts. In this exclusive with Bearing Drift, McDonnell discusses his rationale on these cuts and his [...]
[...] State Budget Comments [14] E-Mail ThisDigg it!Facebook Today, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced significant budget cuts. In this exclusive with Bearing Drift, McDonnell discusses his rationale on these cuts and his [...]
[...] as we saw on Wednesday, the governor has proposed a list of spending cuts that he expects the General Assembly to debate and take action [...]
Leave your response