THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 13, 1995 TAG: 9501130021
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
A partisan squabble in the Virginia General Assembly prevented Gov. George Allen from delivering his State of the Commonwealth Address to the legislators as is traditional. But that suited Allen, just fine.
Instead, he spoke from his office. The bickering allowed him to appear above the fray, distanced from politics as usual, choosing the less-traveled road of the Frost poem he quoted. In effect, Allen said to Virginians: ``It's you and me against the politicians.
That's clever politics, but it's still the General Assembly that will have to turn the appealing vision Allen promotes into the hard details of budgetary decisions. The squabbles are just beginning, but that's the untidy way democracy works.
There is no denying the effectiveness of much of Allen's rhetoric. He worries that student test scores are stagnant, that college tuition has been rising steadily, that jobs and investment have gone to other states, that crime has worsened. Most Virginians share those concerns.
Allen says he won office from voters who expect him to ``cut wasteful bureaucratic spending, lower taxes, reduce the size and reach of government. And make state government more efficient and more effective in meeting its essential responsibilities.''
Now the real debate begins on what Allen's general principles would mean in practice. In acting on Allen's budget, the General Assembly will decide which government spending is wasteful and bureaucratic, and which government responsibilities are essential.
Allen paints his political foes as enthusiasts for ever bigger government and constantly rising taxes. Maybe some fit that description, but most politicians have a healthy fear of taxes which enrage voters. And long before Allen appeared on the scene, Virginia was noted for its fiscal conservatism and for offering a benign climate for business and investment.
The question confronting the General Assembly is whether Allen's proposals will allow the state to achieve the ends he advocates - improved schools, reduced crime, greater prosperity. Many have responded positively to Allen's diagnosis of our problems, but there's less agreement whether he's prescribing the correct medicine. Some say his ideas will lead to a cure, others think they will make the condition worse.
Will slashing state taxes really put more money in taxpayers' pockets? In some states where that's been tried, localities have had to increase property taxes to replace essential services that voters demand. Will Allen's budget cuts of $75 million for schools really improve education? Will a massive prison-building program and cuts to local law enforcement really diminish crime or just cost the state more to incarcerate those who commit it?
Do businesses invariably choose to locate in states that tax them least? If so, Mississippi must be booming. Or do businesses seek a moderate tax environment combined with a well-trained work force, excellent schools, up-to-date infrastructure and other amenities that government provides?
Democrats have appeared disorganized and all but dumbstruck by the Allen juggernaut. But responding to the governor for the party that still retains a narrow majority, Lt. Gov. Don Beyer seemed to find his voice. He said it made sense to reinvent government, but not to blow it up. He favors tax cuts if it is fat that is pared. He noted that Allen's budget choices will have costs and consequences that could include ``congested roads, poor health, eroding schools and jobs that have fled the state.''
Obviously, lines have now been drawn. That's good. Allen has placed serious questions on the table. Answers are needed. The way to arrive at them is through the kind of robust legislative debate that now seems likely.
Citizens should not leave the debate to their elected representatives. The governor ended his address by inviting them to add their voices to the discussion, to make their wishes known. They should accept the invitation. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
GOV. GEORGE F. ALLEN
by CNB