Category: Government Finance
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Juggling the Revenue
By Dick Hall-Sizemore Jim Bacon mentioned in an earlier post that the state’s revenues for April were $700 million less than in April of last year. I was surprised that there were no cries of outrage from readers and dire warnings of the state running a budget deficit. I was also surprised that I did…
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Hidden, Spaced Out, Higher Taxes Coming
By Steve Haner First published this morning by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. The 2020 General Assembly, with its new progressive Democratic majority, passed a host of changes in Virginia tax laws that will begin to hit individuals and businesses in a few weeks on July 1. Because of the COVID-19 economic shutdown,…
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WTJU Podcast: COVID-19 and the Economy
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in Agriculture & forestry, Bacon and Pigs, Blogs and Blog Administration, Business and Economy, Charity, Philanthropy, Nonprofits, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Corruption and Scandals, Culture wars, Disasters and Disaster Preparedness, Economic development, Education (higher ed), Education (K-12), Efficiency in Government, Elections, Electoral process, Energy, Entrepreneurs and Innovation, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Governance, Government Finance, Government Transparency, Gun rights, Health Care, Housing, Immigration, Infrastructure, Insurance, Labor and Workforce, Media, Money in politics, Planning, Politics, Poverty & income gap, Property rights, Public safety & health, Race and Race Relations, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, Taxes, Telecommunications, TransportationBy Peter Galuszka Here’s is the twice-monthly podcast produced by WTJU, the official radio station of the University of Virginia. With me on this podcast are Nathan Moore, the station general manager, and Sarah Vogelsong, who covers, labor, energy and environmental issues across the state for the Virginia Mercury, a fairly new and highly regarded…
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State Spending Hike Also Postponed, Not Canceled
By Steve Haner Originally published in the May 3 Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star and then distributed by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. Just as COVID-19 was starting its destruction of the world’s economy in early March, the Virginia General Assembly took final action on an exuberant two-year state budget within shouting distance of $140…
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Screwing Workers On Safety and Liability
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in Bacon and Pigs, Business and Economy, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Corruption and Scandals, Economic development, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Government Finance, Health Care, Money in politics, Public safety & health, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, TransportationBy Peter Galuszka At 4:30 a.m. on April 27, about 100 workers of the Greater Richmond Transit Company — half of the total – failed to show up for work. Worried about the health of its membership, Local 1220 of the International Amalgamated Transit Union demanded additional safety measures such as full personal protection equipment,…
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Why Northam Is Such An Important Governor
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in Abortion, Feminism, Women’s Rights, Agriculture & forestry, Business and Economy, Charity, Philanthropy, Nonprofits, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Defense, National Security, Energy, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Governance, Government Finance, Government Transparency, Government workers and pensions, Gun rights, Health Care, Immigration, Infrastructure, Insurance, Labor and Workforce, Land use & Development, LGBQT, Media, Money in politics, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, Taxes, TelecommunicationsBy Peter Galuszka This is a bit like throwing chum at a school of sharks, but here is my latest in Style Weekly. I wrote an assessment of Gov. Ralph Northam that is overall, quite positive. My take goes against much of the sentiment of other contributors on this blog. They are entitled to their…
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Stop Gap Budget Amendments
By Dick Hall-Sizemore Not surprisingly, the Governor did not try to re-write the budget in the reconvened session. There is just not enough information available now regarding the extent to which state revenues will be affected by the economic downturn brought on by the novel coronavirus. Using the process set out in the Appropriation Act…
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No Fed Return Required, Other Questions Answered
by Steve Haner There were various factual debates over my post on tax payments yesterday, and these updates are worth special attention. A morning conversation with a certified public accounting familiar with Virginia taxes brought to light the following: If you fail to file a state return by May 1, the six-month extension truly is…
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Despite Offered Delays, Pay Your Taxes On Time
By Steve Haner The latest complaint against the Northam Administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic is failing to provide adequate state tax relief. The complaint comes from the Tax Foundation and surfaced in a news report in Wednesday’s Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star. The Richmond Times-Dispatch has now chimed in with an editorial. Apparently most other states…
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Virginia’s Let-the-Good-Times-Roll Budget
by Kerry Dougherty We’re in a hell of a mess here in Virginia, folks. Oh, other states are in trouble too. But how many of them saw their state legislatures go on a wild spending spree less than a month ago, even while the coronavirus was spreading across the globe? How many of them have…
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The Budget Sausage Factory
by Dick Hall-Sizemore I have been going through the individual budget amendments adopted by the General Assembly. I admit it — I am a budget nerd who finds this stuff interesting. Plus, in this instance, my immersion into budget wonkery had the advantage of providing a diversion from the omnipresent discussion of the coronavirus. Budgets…
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Buying Time to Fix the Budget Hole
by Dick Hall-Sizemore To deal with the virus-created budget crisis in the short term, the Northam administration has announced sort of a “time out.” According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the plan will consist of two primary components: freezing all new spending and diverting planned deposits in the cash reserve to pay for essential services in…
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Boomergeddon Update: Back on Track to Self-Destruction!
by James A. Bacon It’s been ten years since I published my book, “Boomergeddon,” in which I advanced the argument that the fiscal/monetary system of the United States would collapse into chaos by the late 2020s or so. The nation has continued down the path to perdition, but not at the rate I had expected.…
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Right Wing Uses Virus To Stifle Needed Reforms
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in Blogs and Blog Administration, Business and Economy, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Culture wars, Demographics, Economic development, Energy, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Governance, Government Finance, Government Transparency, Gun rights, Health Care, Infrastructure, Labor and Workforce, Media, Money in politics, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Social Services and Entitlements, TaxesBy Peter Galuszka Right-wingers in Virginia have been apoplectic for months that Democrats finally captured the General Assembly after years of Republican control. They also were enraged that the legislature this winter passed a number of reforms that would draw Virginia into the 21st Century such raising the minimum wage, boosting collective bargaining, tightening rules…
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Thank God for Medicaid Expansion
By Peter Galuszka For years after the Affordable Care Act, “Obamacare,” made millions of federal dollars available for states to expand Medicaid health coverage, Virginia Republicans steadfastly blocked Virginia from using the money. Led by former House Speaker Bill Howell and Sen. Tommy Norment, the GOP claimed that expanding Medicaid to nearly 400,000 people would…