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RICHMOND,
VA, December 11, 2006 – Virginia House of
Delegates Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford)
today announced that the House Republican Caucus
has pledged to commit a minimum of 50% of revenues
exceeding those already allocated in the 2006-2008
State Budget to transportation funding. The amount
of the latest revenue increase – or budget
surplus – is expected to be announced when
Governor Timothy M. Kaine unveils his proposals
for amendments to the 2006-2008 Biennial Budget in
his address to a joint meeting of the House
Appropriations, House Finance, and Senate Finance
Committees on Friday, December 15. Based upon
budget outlook data released at last month’s
House Appropriations Committee Retreat, the
expected revisions will be between $475 million
and $550.0 million over the amounts in House Bill
5002, the current 2006-2008 state budget.
Announcing this pledge by his fellow House
Republicans, Speaker Howell issued the following
statement:
“For most of this decade, and certainly since I
began my tenure as Speaker, House Republicans have
made improving Virginia’s network of roads,
railways, and public transit a top priority.
“In 2005, the budget proposal approved by the
Republican-led House of Delegates prioritized and
invested $1 billion in additional funding for
transportation, which was the largest increase in
additional funding advanced by any caucus – and
substantially larger than the amount proposed by
then-Governor Warner. Because of our initiative
and leadership on this issue that touches people
in their every day lives, we were able to
negotiate an $850 million increase in
transportation funding that was enacted into law
last year. This was the largest single commitment
made to our roads since 1986’s Special Session
on transportation. Because our 2005 transportation
package contained funding sources that provide
continuing revenues, the funds dedicated to our
roads are larger this year than they were the year
before.
“During the 2006 Regular Session, House
Republicans again stepped up and took the lead in
providing a comprehensive package to address
transportation challenges. Our three-pronged
legislative package passed with strong bi-partisan
support. It reformed and streamlined
Virginia’s delivery of transportation services. It
strengthened coordination in the transportation
decision-making process between the Commonwealth
and its localities. It also increased
transportation revenues by $1.2 billion. This
House proposal would have accomplished all these
goals without increasing taxes and still provided
substantial funding increases to all of
Virginia’s other core services like education,
health care, public safety and the environment.
“During the Special Session that concluded in
September, House Republicans advanced a package of
even more comprehensive and forward-thinking
proposals. Incorporating the most ambitious update
to Virginia’s laws regarding land use since the
initiation of zoning, we began examining ways to
address one of the root causes of our
transportation challenges, rapid residential
growth. We constructed a package of organizational
reforms to make the Virginia Department of
Transportation and the Commonwealth Transportation
Board more responsive, more effective, and better
stewards of the taxpayers’ funds. And, we
proposed an additional $2.4 billion in funding to
jump-start long-overdue projects and relieve
congestion, especially in Northern Virginia and
Hampton Roads.
“This Friday, the Governor will announce that
– for the fourth fiscal year in a row – the
Commonwealth will be running a budget surplus. In
past years, and certainly in the amendments
offered by the Governor to the 2006-2008 Biennial
Budget earlier this year, there have been efforts
to dedicate these surplus funds to items other
than our top priority, transportation.
“House Republicans believe that if
transportation is truly a top priority, the
Commonwealth’s budget must reflect that. By
consistently dedicating a larger share of our
existing revenues to transportation than Governors
Warner, Kaine or the Virginia Senate, House
Republicans have repeatedly shown our commitment
to improving transportation.
“Today, I am here to reaffirm that commitment,
to announce a budgetary pledge to reinforce it,
and, as a result, to further improve
transportation. During the 2007 budget amendment
process, House Republicans will insist upon and
will only support a package of budget amendments
dedicating not less than 50% of the latest surplus
to transportation funding. This amount will be in
addition to the unallocated $339 million in
funding the General Assembly and Governor approved
for transportation during the budget process last
year.
“We believe that the 50% level of new revenue
revisions is a floor and not a ceiling. We
will be encouraging our members on Appropriations
to craft a package of amendments that – if
possible – may actually reserve an even higher
percentage of new revenues to transportation. For
transportation to be our top priority, we have to
dedicate the largest percentage of available
revenues to that purpose.
“Today’s declaration is both a continuation of
our existing commitment and the beginning of a
series of announcements from House Republicans
regarding innovative proposals to address
transportation in the upcoming session. Included
will be proposals resulting from the special
subcommittee I had set up to find a way to
directly tie transportation and land use
decisions. In the days and weeks leading up
to the 2007 Session, we will seize the
opportunities for action presented by the upcoming
Session. We will offer a host of practical
legislation to improve the quality of life for
Virginians. This legislation will be designed to
reduce congestion and chokepoints on our roadways,
and give hard-pressed localities the tools they
need now to manage growth.
“House Republicans are committed to working with
the Governor and Senators to advance innovative
solutions to meet Virginia’s challenges take
advantage of new opportunities. In the core
responsibility of improving transportation, the
House has consistently approved measures and
funding packages that – if enacted – would
reduce the congestion on our roadways, reduce the
time Virginians must spend in their vehicles, and
increase the amount of time they get to enjoy
doing the things that enrich their lives..
“The upcoming 2007 Session presents not only a
rare, but an excellent opportunity to make
progress on the critical issue of transportation.
The people of Virginia want and deserve action. House
Republicans are working to deliver. Squandering
another chance to advance bold reforms is not an
option, and it’s not leadership. It is our hope
that the Governor and the Senate will join House
Republicans in insisting upon a comprehensive
approach to improving Virginia’s transportation
network and in requiring that our roads, railways,
and public transit systems receive a larger share
of the $74 billion in taxes that hard-working
taxpayers now send to their state government in
Richmond.”
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