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February 3, 2003

Va. spending plans include increased fees, raises for state workers

From: Hampton Roads Daily Press, VA - 03 Feb 2003

By Hugh Lessig and Terry Scanlon
Daily Press

February 3, 2003

RICHMOND -- House and Senate budget writers released their blueprints for state spending Sunday, calling for increased fees, limits on college tuition and raises for state workers.

Mindful of protecting the social safety net even as other areas of government face cuts, both plans would add money for mentally retarded people who are languishing on waiting lists for community-based care and for those addicted to drugs.

The budget hits home on the Peninsula as well.

The House version funds a public defender's office in Newport News. It also calls for a study to determine the future of the Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind and Multi-Disabled at Hampton. Both the House and Senate plans cut funding even further for the Virginia Advanced Shipbuilding and Carrier Integration Center.

The controversy over judge selection in this General Assembly session affected spending. Both plans earmark money for a program to evaluate judges. The program was developed in 2001 but not funded. In the past month, lawmakers have bitterly fought over the reappointment of judges, including the denial of a second term to Newport News Circuit Court Judge Verbena Askew.

"Something positive is coming out of this," said Sen. Janet D. Howell, D-Fairfax, who helped push for funding along with Sen. Thomas K. Norment Jr., R-James City, and Del. Robert F. McDonnell, R-Virginia Beach.

Done against the backdrop of the worst financial crisis Virginia has seen in decades, the senior members of the budget-writing committees pronounced their work a qualified success.

Virginia is in the middle of a two-year budget cycle. Gov. Mark R. Warner submitted his budget amendments in December - his idea of a mid-course correction - and the House and Senate plans represent versions of the same. Now the two chambers must resolve their differences and return their work to the governor.

"This is, by far, the leanest, most pared-back budget package we have ever had the responsibility to craft," said Sen. John H. Chichester, R-Stafford, the Finance Committee chairman.

Chichester warned that more hard work was to come. The General Assembly has killed any attempts to raise taxes in a year when all 140 members are up for re-election. Next year, Chichester said, lawmakers must address a budget that still needs basic fixes.

"We're not there yet," he said. "The fact is, we're just getting by. We're doing what absolutely must be done, but we're essentially standing still in our other areas of responsibility."

Politically, the Senate was more united than the House. Sen. R. Edward Houck, a Democrat from Spotsylvania, praised Chichester and the other Republicans for coming up with a responsible plan.

On the House side, Democrat Minority Leader Franklin P. Hall sounded less than impressed with his Republican colleagues on the House Appropriations Committee.

The GOP House plan is "a classic case of smoke and mirrors," said Hall, D-Richmond. "It's called master spinning -promises made and hopes that we'll somehow be able to meet them."

Warner commended the General Assembly and said he would examine the fine print over the next few days. While the plans seemed to reflect his priorities, he said, "I have some concerns about the underlying revenue assumptions upon which some of these proposals rely."

Here are some highlights:

PAY RAISES

State workers would receive raises under both plans of either 2 percent or 2.5 percent. The Senate wants to fund raises for public school teachers; the House said it couldn't find the money.

The Senate plan sets aside $36 million to fund a 2 percent salary increase for state employees, faculty and state-supported local employees. It earmarks $16 million toward a 2 percent salary increase for teachers. Increased lottery proceeds would also help fund this increase.

The House sets aside $52.3 million for a 2.5 percent raise for state employees, faculty and state-supported local employees.

"Putting teachers in there would've broke the bank," said Del. James H. Dillard II, R-Fairfax. "It was discussed, but there was just no way we could do it."

DMV OFFICES

In October, Gov. Warner closed 12 offices at the Department of Motor Vehicles and put the remaining 61 offices on reduced hours, closing them on Wednesdays. Last month, Warner said he had found money to reopen the 12 he had closed.

The House and Senate plans also would reopen the closed offices. In addition, the House plan re-establishes Wednesday hours at the remaining offices. The Senate plan does not.

"To do so would have taken away from our other priorities," Chichester said. "The frail elderly would have lacked services, and prison enterprise shops would have been left unguarded. We found this to be unacceptable."

MENTAL HEALTH

A key difference in the two plans concerns Warner's proposal to begin restructuring mental-health services.

Warner proposed shifting $22 million from mental-health hospitals toward community-based care. The Senate supports the concept but not the overall plan.

"We remain wary of re-investment initiatives that rely on unidentified savings at our state institutions in order to expand services in our communities," said Sen. William C. Wampler Jr., R-Bristol.

The House budget "cautiously" supports Warner's plan, said Del. Phillip A. Hamilton, R-Newport News. It adds some language for the legislature to monitor the changes.

For a program that allows the mentally retarded to get community care, the Senate plan adds $7 million for an additional 175 "slots." The House adds $6 million in state and federal funding.

HIGHER EDUCATION

The Senate plan allows for additional tuition increases in fiscal year 2004 of 5 percent or $800 for the biennium, whichever is less.

The House limits the increase to no more than 9 percent per year.

LOCAL IMPACT

In the House budget, the Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind and Multi-Disabled at Hampton would be the focus of a study to determine how to consolidate services with a similar school in Staunton.

The Hampton school has been the target of past closing attempts. The House budget language does not specify which school should close.

The House budget also recommends establishing public defenders' offices in Newport News and Chesapeake.

The VASCIC facility in Newport News suffers under both plans. The House plan cuts $1 million while the Senate cuts $2.5 million.

The House also proposes eliminating the Institute for Early American History at the College of William and Mary.

Museums and other cultural institutions also have a stake in the debate.

The House version of the budget provides $3.6 million for these so-called "non-state agencies," including several in the Peninsula area.

The Senate has no funding for them, saying they do not rise to the level of other priorities.

FEE/PRICE INCREASES

Both houses adopted a $1 mandatory fee for vehicle registration. It replaces the optional $2 fee that lawmakers snuck into the budget last year.

The House also proposes a $25 filing fee for child-support, custody and visitation cases. The House also suggests raising the cost of driver's licenses, which are renewed every five years, from $15 to $20. That money would go directly to opening DMV offices.

The Senate budget would increase the cost of reinstating driver's licenses from $30 to $45, which is $5 more than Warner has proposed.

To restore funding for the mentally disabled, the House proposes increasing the average price for alcohol sold in state stores by 2.4 percent.

Hugh Lessig can be reached at (804) 225-7345 or by e-mail at hlessig@dailypress.com. Terry Scanlon

can be reached at 247-7821 or by e-mail at tscanlon@dailypress.com.

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