ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, December 21, 1996 TAG: 9612230053
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: DAVID M. POOLE STAFF WRITER
Gov. George Allen on Friday recommended limited increased funding in education and the environment, stepping back from brinkmanship with the Democrat-dominated General Assembly.
"The people of Virginia didn't send us down here to bicker. They sent us down here to work together," Allen told members of the assembly's money committees.
Democrats said they were pleased that Allen, entering his fourth and final year as governor, is emphasizing consensus issues such as preserving the Chesapeake Bay.
"I think you're seeing a kinder, gentler, greener George Allen," said House Majority Leader Richard Cranwell, a Vinton Democrat.
In his remarks, Allen told lawmakers that a strong economy and reduced welfare expenditures would generate $235million in extra revenue for the 1996-98 state budget.
The Republican chief executive raised the possibility that the General Assembly, when it convenes Jan.8, could return a portion of the revenue to taxpayers. But his suggestion was a faint echo to his government-slashing tax cut that lawmakers rejected two years ago.
Still, Allen recommended setting aside $20 million as a prudent buffer against future contingencies.
"Just as families all across Virginia don't spend every last penny they earn, neither should their state government," he said.
Democratic lawmakers said there were too many unmet needs - particularly pay raises for teachers and state workers - to set aside such a large budget reserve.
Del. Clifton "Chip" Woodrum, D-Roanoke, said that if Allen were interested in being prudent, he would not have turned down $8.4million in federal Goals 2000 funds for education.
Speaking with reporters, Allen appeared to soften his ideological opposition to Goals 2000, which he has claimed would expose Virginia's new academic standards to meddling by federal bureaucrats. Virginia is the only state not accepting the federal money earmarked for comprehensive education reform.
Allen said he would go along with Goals 2000 if the money - an estimated $14.8 million over the next two years - could assist with implementing the state's own new academic standards.
"If the feds want to give us money based on that, fine," he said.
On the spending side of the ledger, Allen recommended spending an extra $33.8million to operate the three prisons being completed in Fluvanna, Sussex and Mecklenburg counties. The new facilities will house prisoners serving longer sentences under Allen's no-parole policy for violent offenders.
But the cost of new prisons is less than the Allen administration projected two years ago. The state will delay opening a fourth prison, saving $7.8million for the budget that runs through June 1998.
Another big-ticket item would be $20.6million for increased funding of caseloads of children and families needing assistance with foster care and special education.
Democratic lawmakers said Allen's proposal for these services, provided under the Comprehensive Services Act, falls about $10million short of growing needs.
Environmentalists gave mixed reviews to Allen's budget amendments.
They applauded his recommended down payment of $11million for a long-term strategy to reduce excessive nitrogen and phosphorous from sewage treatment plants along the Chesapeake Bay.
But environmentalists were disappointed that Allen did not address enforcement staff shortages at the Department of Environmental Quality.
On education, Allen proposed a series of modest initiatives aimed at improving academic achievement in grades K-12.
He recommended $6.2million to evaluate the reading skills of all first-graders and provide intensive tutoring - one instructor for five students - to correct any problems.
Administration officials estimate that nearly one out of every four children would benefit from the plan. Localities would have to provide matching funds.
"This initiative will prepare students for later success and avert lost opportunities for them in school and in life," he said.
Allen told lawmakers they would have an extra $28million to play with because of falling welfare rolls, which he attributed to a two-year limit on Aid to Families with Dependent Children benefits being phased in across the state.
The AFDC caseload has fallen from 74,000 to 59,500 since 1995, a rate that mirrors national trends.
Allen recommended quickening the pace for welfare reform, implementing the full work-for-benefits plan statewide by next fall. The plan begins Oct.1 in the Roanoke/New River region, 18 months earlier than expected.
To read Allen's proposed budget amendments on line, go to: http://www.state.va.us/dpb
LENGTH: Medium: 94 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by staff: Allen's agenda. KEYWORDS: MGR GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1997by CNB