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The first week of every General Assembly session is always full of activity with many ceremonies and traditions that inaugurate the convening of the oldest continuously operating legislative body. On Wednesday night, Governor McDonnell presented a bold plan for the future of Virginia in his State of the Commonwealth Address. Working with the legislature the Governor hopes to make Virginia a model for a smaller government and a stronger economy. He outlined many of his priorities which include reform initiatives, fiscal responsibility, and the restructuring of state government. I agree with the Governor that the time is now to make government more efficient and work better on behalf of the taxpayer. To that end, I am carrying one of the Governor's bills to eliminate several duplicative or unnecessary Advisory Boards and Commissions saving the state thousands.
The Governor's blueprint includes an Opportunity at Work agenda that would enhance the strong business friendly climate of the Commonwealth in order for there to be more job creation and economic development. The "Top Jobs for the 21st Century" will come from efforts to educate young people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) as well as other investments and innovation. Getting Virginia Moving again will also impact the pace of economic recovery in the state. The Governor and I are also committed to liberty and freedom legislation that safeguards our private property rights, rebalances the proper role of state and federal government, and protects the right to work laws that make us one of the top states for business in the nation.
This week we swore in a new member of the House of Delegates, Greg Habeeb, who was elected to fill the seat of now Congressman Morgan Griffith. We will miss Morgan but Greg comes highly regarded from his community of Salem.
Every year, the House of Delegates considers an average of about 2,000 bills and resolutions. To manage this workload in the forty five days allowed under the Constitution of Virginia, the House has fourteen standing committees to process legislation. This year, I have been appointed to serve on four committees and 8 sub-committees. This year I will chair two sub-committees and will be a Deputy Whip. Speaker Howell has asked me to continue to serve on the Courts of Justice, Health, Welfare and Institutions, General Laws and Finance committees.
BUDGET
One topic of discussion in recent months has revolved around one item: the state budget. An economic downturn invariably affects the coffers of state government. As a result, discussions about spending cuts have been the main topic for weeks.
Even though Virginia is rated the best managed state and the best state for business, we are not insulated from the effects of a national - and in this case worldwide - recession and slow recovery. In dealing with budget shortfalls, the big difference between Virginia (and most states, for that matter) and the federal government is that our budget must be balanced. There is no "deficit spending" in the Commonwealth.
We must make do with the funds we have, just as the people we work for have to in their own homes. Between now and when the General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn on February 26, legislators must produce a balanced budget with the funds available.
Our budget in many ways is affected by the federal budget. With talk of once again raising the debt ceiling in Congress, I have introduced a bill to express the sense of the General Assembly that the Congress of the United States call an amendments convention pursuant to Article V of the United States Constitution for the purpose of proposing a constitutional amendment providing that an increase in the federal debt requires approval from a majority of the legislatures of the separate states (HJ565)
LEGISLATION
The "Smaller Government, Stronger Economy" Joint Republican Legislative Agenda for the 2011 Session of the General Assembly was announced on Tuesday. General Assembly Republicans collectively laid out seven major priorities they are committed to advancing for the people of Virginia in order to spur private sector job creation and make state government smaller and more efficient.
The "Smaller Government, Stronger Economy" Joint Republican Agenda Includes:
- Reform, Fiscal Responsibility and Restructuring - Includes recommendations of the Governor's Commission on Government Reform, Spending Cuts, Hiring Freeze, and Virginia Retirement System Reform Legislation;
- Opportunity At Work - The Governor's Job Creation and Economic Development Package
- Top Jobs for the 21st Century - The Governor's Higher Education Reform,Investment and Innovation Legislation
- Get Virginia Moving - The Governor's Transportation Funding and Reform Package
- Property Rights - Ensuring that individual property rights are protected, maintained and not threatened by government use for non-core services and infrastructure
- Repeal Amendment - Constitutional amendment to allow the states to reject a federal law for policy reasons
- Virginian's Right To Work - Ensuring through legislation and a state constitutional amendment that any union election in Virginia is conducted by secret ballot
Last winter, Governor McDonnell and the General Assembly closed an historic $4.2 billion shortfall in the current budget by reducing spending to 2006 levels, and not raising taxes. In December, Governor McDonnell proposed $191 million in additional cuts, savings and re-appropriations to priority areas in his amendments to the budget. The Governor's budget amendments are focused on prioritizing state dollars to encourage job creation.
Additionally, he announced a bold reform plan to ensure the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) remains viable and solvent. Under this plan, all state employees would be required to contribute 5% to their retirement and the employee contributions will be matched with a 3% pay raise. The reforms will put over $300 million in additional funds into the VRS system in FY 2012 alone and will add $4.2 Billion over the next 10 years.
The package includes legislation creating the Virginia Research and Technology Investment Program, the Virginia Tourism Grant Fund and approximately $55 million in new grants and incentives for job creation in the Commonwealth.
Another key component of the "Smaller Government, Stronger Economy" agenda is the Governor's "Top Jobs for the 21st Century - the Governor's Higher Education Reform and Investment Act" which will ensure more affordability and access for Virginia students to Virginia's colleges and universities, provide financial aid for middle income families, require more year long utilization of college campuses, and provide incentives for schools to create more high demand programs in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
The Governor's transportation funding package, Get Virginia Moving, will invest a substantial amount of money for road and transit projects throughout the Commonwealth. Included in the package are the creation of the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank through the utilization of $150 million from the recent budget surplus resulting from the Governor's cost-cutting measures in 2010 and $250 million from the Governor's successful performance audit of the Virginia Department of Transportation, and fully leveraging available federal highway revenues in a timely manner.
The "Smaller Government, Stronger Economy" Joint Republican Agenda will be advanced through legislation, budget initiatives and state constitutional amendments. Each component of the agenda is designed to reduce the size and scope of government while also prioritizing precious taxpayer resources to the top priority of the McDonnell administration - job creation and economic development.
CONTACT ME
We are now set up in our offices in Richmond. My legislative assistant, Julie Coggsdale, is staffing our office here, located in Room 527 of the General Assembly Building. You can contact us by sending an e-mail to Delcpeace@house.virginia.gov or by sending a letter to me at PO Box 819, Mechanicsville, VA 23112. Or, you can always call the toll-free Constituent Viewpoint Hotline at 1.800.889.0229. That's a good way to let me know you feel about a particular issue being considered during this session.
It's been pretty cold in Richmond (and everywhere) lately, and smiling faces from home are always a welcome sight. So if you're planning to visit the Capitol between now and February 26, please be sure to stop by our office. Hopefully, the worst of the record cold weather is behind us. Look here next week for more news from Richmond. | 
