ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, January 5, 1997 TAG: 9701030050
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: 3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: H. MORGAN GRIFFITH
THE 1997 SESSION of the Virginia General Assembly is likely to be epitomized by the old adage that the more things change the more things stay the same.
This is not to say that we will not be doing our jobs. The short session of the General Assembly was never intended to be a session of major initiatives and change. It was brought in so that any problems with legislation could be resolved and improvements could be made to the budget.
I don't believe there will be any tremendous controversies or major policy shifts because of the nature of the 1997 session. It is the last session of Gov. George Allen's administration, and he has succeeded in most of the changes in policy and philosophy he promised, including the abolition of parole and reform of welfare.
While I do not believe the session will offer any new initiatives and little change, it will be marked by political posturing by both parties.
Don't be fooled into thinking that because there will be no great shifts in policy, there will not be a lot to do during the 45-day session. More than 2,000 bills will be introduced. A majority of them will fail, but they still must be discussed and analyzed.
Also, the most important aspect of governing is to set priorities for the state. In setting priorities, the most significant aspect of a short session is changes to the budget. This year, due to Allen's economic policies, the state is benefiting from an economic surge that has resulted in more than $200 million in additional tax money for the governor and General Assembly to allocate.
Allen has indicated his wishes, and education is one of the major areas he is emphasizing. On the environment, the governor is proposing additional funds for the Chesapeake Bay Tributaries strategy to reduce excessive levels of nutrients. On economic development, the governor is proposing to continue the cooperative tourism advertising and to allocate funds to support prospective businesses in making their decision to locate in Virginia.
These and other spending recommendations to the budget will be considered. Many will be enacted; others will be modified or eliminated. The major difference from 1995 is that this year the governor has left $21 million of the "revenues" on the table, hoping the legislature will not spend it all.
The governor's restraint is to be commended. But with all the pressure on the legislature from the public for additional spending, it is unlikely there will be much of the $21 million left when the budget is completed. Even with the additional money, there will be complaints and dissatisfaction from numerous special-interests groups and legislators trying to increase their slice of the pie. It is often difficult for legislators not to spend all the tax dollars that are generated in a given biennium.
Hopefully, both Democrats and Republicans will remember the money is not created by magic but comes from the pocketbooks of working families of Virginia. If we can increase spending and also save some money for Virginia's future needs, that is certainly an appropriate goal.
When listening to the budget debates, don't be misled by the bidding war over education issues. Both Democrats and Republicans favor education. While Democrats generally tend to favor throwing more money at the situation, Republicans, while realizing money is necessary, generally prefer to first see whether a program is working or, if it is a new program, to make sure the data indicate it will be an efficient program.
There will be much posturing again about Goals 2000 and other federal programs. But in the overall scheme of things, Goals 2000 is not going to make or break the commonwealth's education budget, and as usual money for education will be increased.
Other important budget matters will include resolving the lag-pay problem for state employees. I believe the governor's proposal to alleviate this problem is a good start, but I also believe the legislature should and will improve upon the governor's plan by rolling back the proposed pay increase from December to either October or July.
If there are any fireworks in the upcoming session, they most likely will be by bills intended to reform the system. Numerous bills will be introduced for limiting campaign contributions in hopes of curbing the upward-spiraling cost of elections.
I will once again introduce my bills for constitutional amendments to reform the committee-selection process. Currently, legislative committees are selected in a manner that, as a matter of history, creates disproportionate seating in favor of the majority party. The numbers were so skewed during the 1996 session as to suggest the speaker believes in big "D" Democratic rule but does not believe in little "d" democratic philosophy.
Any political party that holds unbridled sway over a legislative body for more than 100 years always finds it difficult to follow the will of the people until the power to play such games is taken away by the people. That is why I believe a constitutional amendment is necessary.
Unfortunately, these amendments will go to the 10-member Rules Committee, on which only two Republicans serve. (In 1996 the makeup of the 100-member house was 52 Democrats, 47 Republicans and one independent.) Since the committee has only half of the minority membership that democratic proportional seating would indicate is appropriate, these amendments will most likely again fail to see the light of day on the House floor.
While initiatives for additional disclosure of campaign contributions may make it to the floor for debate, it is unlikely that other initiatives for reform will be as successful. One initiative in particular that is needed, but which I fear will not succeed, is new requirements for legislators to disclose how much they have been paid by companies and individuals that do business with the state.
Currently, it must be reported if a legislator receives more than $10,000 from a type of industry, etc., but there are no disclosures for how much more than $10,000 the individual has received and for what purpose the money was received. These reforms in particular are necessary due to the Trigon affair, which caused the General Assembly to be ridiculed in Money magazine's August issue.
While there may not be any headline initiatives, the process is about democracy, accountability and noting the priorities that Virginians want their elected officials to pursue. I encourage each of you to contact your legislator about bills and issues that are important to you. Many constituents contact me and have provided me with ideas for a number of bills I have introduced. I encourage each of you to follow the actions of the legislature and voice your opinions.
It is hard to predict exactly what will happen during each session, and there are always surprises. When the session is over, I don't believe we will look back and see any great changes. But the commonwealth will survive, as it has done since 1619.
H. Morgan Griffith, a Salem Republican, represents the 8th Legislative District in the Virginia House of Delegates.
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