Stimulating Virginia

            While some Republican governors say they will resist outlays to their states from the stimulus package, others are glad to receive any assistance available to balance multibillion dollar deficits as revenues decline and welfare rolls swell.

        Virginia Governor Tim Kaine has set up a website to help solicit feedback for how the commonwealth’s portion of funds will be spent: http://www.stimulus.virginia.gov.  It is either an ingenious use of citizen-empowered communication in the digital era or a dubiously-effective public relations maneuver.  Some of the ideas offered by Virginians are patently irrelevant—one poster says: “Give the Money Back! We don’t need to hock our children’s future to make this country a socialist utopia!”  Others are impractical but also disheartening: “My family would like $50,000.00 to make improvements to my parents home. My father is suffering form Parkinson’s disease and I would like to move back home to help him.” 

        But most of the ideas for spending the money are somewhere in the middle—genuine issues of infrastructure repair or community improvement that would put people to work.  Here is my list of spending priorities, were I the governor dealing with no-strings-attached federal money:

Aid to counties: Virginia has over 300 local governments, including 94 counties, which all provide for primary education, public safety services, and social assistance to the disadvantaged.  In addition, localities in Northern Virginia and in the other urban areas subsidize the operation of buses, Metro transit, and commuter trains.  Directing money toward counties would allow them to retain all of the community-based and school-based programs that assist the needy and prevent idle or at-risk children from turning to crime or drugs.  Not to mention that class sizes would be kept low and curricula for special education/non-English speaking students would not be endangered.  The conservative-leaning state would also not be able to discriminate against progressive policies that are more tolerable in some counties in dealing with affordable housing, the environment, and day labor sites for immigrants.

Aid to colleges and universities: Education has long-term payoffs and will not likely stimulate the economy immediately, but if universities are not forced to raise their tuition, the result will be a healthier, wealthier, better-trained, and diverse workforce in coming years.  Especially if the United States wants to retool its economy to regain our edge against Asian competition, we need to continue to produce engineers, public policy experts, and students of international affairs who can understand the importance of U.S. cooperation with the world in the globalized era.

Aid to renewable energy projects: To the south, Virginia is vast swaths of open farmland; to the North are tightly-packed office buildings and subdivisions.  Research and development money should be made available to determine the viability of creating wind farms or solar panel fields in the open areas.  Also, we could consider adding solar panels to government buildings and the high-density cityscapes of Arlington and Alexandria.  Mass transit should be allowed to maintain their operations at current capacity and be given capital funds to improve reliability or efficiency.

Aid to cover Medicaid payments: The last thing we need is a large, unemployed, unhealthy adult population heading into the twenty-first century.  Maintaining medical benefits is the sensible thing to do until the federal government can pull up its sleeves and reform the health care system.

Governor Kaine smokes ‘em out

        I wonder what would it take for Virginia’s Republicans to raise the cigarette tax. It’s obvious that an increased risk for lung cancer in smokers and for heart disease among those who breathe secondhand smoke is not reason enough. Nor are the increased health care costs associated with such ailments. Maybe if cigarettes were linked to homosexuality or atheism, legislators from the Grand Old Party would put their foot down. But as it is, they are resisting the governor’s attempt to target cigarettes for a new source of revenue.
        Tobacco in Virginia dates back to the days of the Jamestown colony. And it was in 2004 that Altria Group (which owns Philip Morris) moved its headquarters from New York to Richmond, where over 6,000 are employed in the cigarette plant making Marlboros and Virginia Slims for domestic distribution.  By 2010 Richmond will be Philip Morris’s only domestic producer of cigarettes.  Consequently, Virginia has the fourth-lowest cigarette tax in the country at 30 cents, well below the national average of $1.19. Speaking of dollars and cents, it may be worth noting the that Republican gubernatorial candidate, Attorney General Robert McDonnell, has already received $15,000 from Altria; two state legislators competing for the Democratic nomination have each received $5,000. Furthermore, last year Altria gave $93,000 to Republicans (including the chairmen of the committees on finance and health in the House of Delegates) and $65,000 to Democrats in Virginia (an 18% difference).

        Republicans say that it is unfair to single out one industry for tax increases and that jobs could be in jeopardy if cigarettes became more expensive. So let me get this straight: the governor can cut thousands of jobs in transportation, social services, the prison system, and force counties to eliminate positions or freeze salaries, but heaven forbid that the demand for cigarettes be in any way inhibited? Raising the tax by thirty cents would generate $150 million per year, which does not come close to the projected $3 billion deficit; however, it will dissuade people from smoking and reduce the state’s health care expenditures.
        And higher taxes on cigarettes are not unfair targeting, they are just another form of regulation. Carmakers must include airbags and seatbelts; gun shops must do some sort of background check. At this point, denying that secondhand smoke is not harmful is like denying that carbon emissions do no damage. We can limit where people smoke but can only attempt to regulate how much they smoke by making smoking more costly than quitting.
        It may not be fair that smokers will have to pay a little bit more, but they are disadvantaged by choice. The state has a duty to ensure the health and welfare of its citizens, and smokers are putting themselves and others at risk through their behavior. By proposing a tax raise, Governor Tim Kaine (D) is allowing the legislature to show their hand in an economic hard place: what is more important, cheap cigarettes or healthcare and education for our children?
        The Republicans may try to deny that dichotomy, but it is real. Even for a party that is appalled at the idea of any tax increase whatsoever, forcing smokers to cut down on their consumption is a lot more palatable than budget cuts to worthwhile programs statewide.

Yes we Kaine

He gave an early endorsement of candidate Barack Obama; he campaigned relentlessly in the Old Dominion; and he delivered a majority Democratic congressional delegation, a Democratic senator, and a Democratic president for the first time in 44 years.  And so, this week, Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia was chosen to head the Democratic National Committee, a reward from his friend, the new president.

            Several factors combined to push Virginia into the blue category this year, not just Kaine.  But that occurrence, combined with his status as a supposed vice-presidential finalist, have catapulted him onto the national stage.  Likewise, a lot of what happens in the national elections in 2010 will have to do with what the Democratic Congress and White House are able to accomplish, not just Kaine’s strategizing.  However, it is possible that Kaine, while rightfully putting the people’s business of Virginia first, may be losing time on building that strategy during his last year in office.  And regardless of how well he performs in this new job, the very fact that he took it will present immediate problems.

            The governor faces constant stonewalling in Richmond from the House of Delegates, which holds a six-seat Republican majority.  Their message has been clear: don’t raise taxes statewide, especially not to pay for roads and mass transportation up in the liberal and illegal immigrant-ridden suburbs of Northern Virginia.  After many years, multiple special legislative sessions that had to be funded by the taxpayers, and a state Supreme Court ruling, the General Assembly has failed to pass a comprehensive transportation funding package. 

            To resolve this issue and the massive budget cuts that are needed to close a $3 billion gap, Kaine will need to work delicately with Republican House members, something he has not done too well up until this point.  But after this news, the Republicans will trust him even less.  On the national stage he will have to be rabidly partisan, while simultaneously reaching across the aisle at home.  He needs to build a coalition with Republicans, while simultaneously plotting their demise.  A good measure of Kaine’s operational acumen would be if Democrats managed to take the governorship and the House of Delegates in November; but if they lose both, his effectiveness as party chair would be off to a rocky and embarrassing start.

            He still remains popular in Virginia, but so does the man seeking the governor’s office in November, Republican Attorney General Robert McDonnell.  And while Kaine, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a second term, can legitimately claim Republican meddling for failing to produce a transportation package, he might be accused of not being as cooperative as his predecessor, Mark Warner (now a senator), who closed an even bigger budget gap four years earlier.  Virginia is less conservative than it was eight years ago, but it is by no means reliably Democratic.  Even with rigorous campaigning by Kaine, Warner, and possibly even Obama, the Democratic nominee for governor this fall will face a close fight.

            Ironically, the former Democratic National Committee Chairman and Northern Virginia resident Terry McAuliffe is seeking the nomination.  Even though he was Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager, in his YouTube announcement he borrowed a phrase from Obama, saying “yes, we can do it again”.  While he has not yet had a chance to debate on state issues, McAuliffe’s candidacy means that there will be a two-thirds chance that the Democratic nominee will be a Northern Virginian.  And hopefully that will give the new administration leverage to ram Metro, commuter rail, and smart growth funding through the legislature, even if it does mean higher taxes.  I don’t mind — it’s more necessary than ever.

We Just Disagree

            For the umpteenth time in the past decade, Virginia legislators have failed to bring home the bacon on transportation funding during their special legislative session.  Republicans, which dominate the House of Delegates and who are fast becoming an endangered species in Northern Virginia, have been scapegoated for refusing to be caught dead in the same room as a statewide tax increase proposal.  This is partly due to Republicans’ ritualized opposition to more taxes and also to the general contempt with which Rest-of-Virginians view those in NoVa for their highfalutin, economy-boostin’, immigrant-welcomin’, Confederacy-rejectin’, population boomin’, Starbucks-patronizin’ culture. 

Well, the feeling is mutual: Northern Virginians know that despite being the driving force behind the state’s economy and embracing our status as the workforce of the nation’s capital, we contribute more in tax dollars to the state as a whole than we receive—I have heard a lot of frustrated people mention the figure of 25 cents on every dollar but I have also heard the figure of fourteen cents out of every forty.  Plus, it is hard not to notice the pristine condition of Rest-of-Virginia’s roads and highways that may see only a few hundred cars per day, whereas NoVa’s roads and rails are in need of expansion.

Not that the Republicans are necessarily at fault for our traffic—certainly the rabid suburban expansion authorized by local governments without adequate extensions of public transportation was an awful idea.  But Rest-of-Virginians who cannot afford to live in NoVa yet still covet our jobs have a stake in the region’s transportation solution, too.  If the Republicans abandon NoVa in the next election cycle (there are only three Republican delegates from Fairfax County, down from six a few years ago; the senator count has gone from four to one) and Northern Virginia becomes a one-party pseudo-state similar to the partisan geographic split after the Civil War, their constituents will not.  How has the legislature gotten to be so stubborn?  This is the same body that once brought us “Give me liberty or give me death!” in the face of unfair taxation.  Now when taxation is fair and necessary, the only rabble rousing cry is Republican Morgan Griffith’s of “We are not a full-time legislature. People have plans, they have businesses, they have real jobs.  We cannot sit down here all summer.”

Yes, Mr. Griffith, fixing the problems of a polarized state is not a “real job.”  Heaven forbid you should sit in Richmond in the stifling summer heat, with the interminable gridlock keeping you glued to your seat, and coming home late every night because of the backlog (of bills).  That task should be left to the 32% of Virginians who do it every day—because it’s not like we have plans, businesses or real jobs in Northern Virginia.  And in that vein, I dedicate this limerick to Delegate Griffith:

The Assembly, it can’t get stuff done.

A compromise ne’er has won.

So upon much reflection,

GOP says, “Screw it, wait for the next election.”

Then runs home for some good summer fun.

While unable to fund Metro’s eligibility for $1.5 billion in federal funds and fix the soon-to-be $600 million shortfall in the road maintenance budget and…

Oops, that last line didn’t rhyme.  Well, I’m obviously not a great poet, but I bet I’d stand a formidable chance at becoming a decent legislator.

7/14

Richmond on my mind

            Despite the Virginia General Assembly’s multiple attempts to resolve transportation funding, the solution remains in a similar state as the problem: stuck in traffic.  The only difference is that drivers know that they will eventually get to their destination; we have no clue as to when the legislature will find a fix.  Last year’s funding package was the closest the state has come to alleviating congestion in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, seeming to end the partisan debate between Republicans (averse to raising taxes) and Democrats (who disagree on whether to raise the sales tax or the gas tax) until the Supreme Court invalidated that piece of legislation in March.  It seems that the lawmakers overlooked the key principle of representative government—no taxation without representation—and allowed regional transportation authorities (read, unelected officials) to levy taxes on Northern Virginians directly.  The bad news is that the $300 million per year that the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority was supposed to accrue to fund Virginia Railway Express, Metro, roads, and buses is now gone.  The good thing is this: the General Assembly must now operate clearly and decisively.  They must take accountability if they raise taxes and they must face the consequences of a system in peril if they do not.

            In discussing any matter of legislation, we must acknowledge that there has been a disconnect between Northern Virginia and the rest of the state.  NoVa has a vibrant economy, a culture that encompasses myriad nationalities and ethnicities, a noticeable liberal slant, good public schools, and a continuing road congestion problem.  The diffidence to the traffic situation in Richmond plus the knowledge that Northern Virginians do not get as much a return on their tax dollars as they contribute to state coffers has even given rise to rumblings about secession.  It is highly unlikely to happen but it would not be unprecedented.  After all, in 1861 the counties of western Virginia separated from the eastern portion of the state over issues of unequal legislative influence, differences in economy, and communal attachment to the South.  Any separation of Northern Virginia from the state would likely be due to the completely unrelated matters of unequal legislative influence, differences in economy, and communal attachment to the South.  But I digress.

            In looking to solve the transportation quandary, it is important for our representatives to look at what is needed for the state as well as regionally.  For those who argue against projects outside of the areas nearest to D.C., such as buying new VRE equipment or expanding I-95 down to Massaponax, it is important to note that many people commuting into the District have been pushed farther south and west in the state due to the high cost of living in NoVa.  It is not unusual for people to drive in from Culpeper or Spotsylvania (VRE recently started a bus service from Richmond that connects with trains at the Fredericksburg station) to get to work.  Clearly if more cars and more rail passengers are clogging the system from outside Northern Virginia, it should provide reason for a tax increase that is not footed solely by a few counties.  Conversely, Northern Virginias must recognize that we are somewhat penalizing the rest of the state for our unchecked urban sprawl; at only 32 percent of the state population, we are the minority after all.

            The legislature’s lethargy, though, stems from the GOP’s reluctance to raise any taxes at all.  Virginia has a gas tax that has not been raised since 1986 and one of the lowest sales taxes of any state, so why can we not pay a little extra in the short term if it helps us toward getting a dedicated source of funding for mass transit and roads in the long term?  Ideally the concept map would look like this: a better mass transportation system would lead to increased usage, reducing the number of cars on the road and paving (no pun intended) the way towards less intensive road maintenance.  More people on trains and buses will increase their operating ratio and reduce the state and local subsidy which may just result in lower taxes.  Northern Virginia will always be paying more for its transportation infrastructure, but given the explosive growth within the past decade our system first needs to catch up with the demand.  A tax on gas for Northern Virginians will encourage the expansion and use of alternate forms of transportation; a gas tax for the rest of the state will encourage people to drive less.  A sales tax (though not on food and drugs, per Kaine’s proposal) would similarly beget less consumption, which is not the end of the world.  If the citizens of the state can compromise in this fashion, our representatives should do everything in their power on June 23 to create a palatable, reliable (and legal) system to fund our roads and rails.

 

5/25