THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 29, 1995 TAG: 9510290084
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARGARET EDDS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
As congressional Republicans and Democrats wage a historic battle over the federal budget, there are quiet signs that Virginia is approaching a similar crossroads this winter.
Republican Gov. George F. Allen's budgeteers - at work on his multibillion-dollar 1996-98 plan, due to be unveiled Dec. 20 - say they are ditching ``business-as-usual'' budgeting in favor of asking agencies to reassess the value of everything they do.
That could lead to ``zero-based budgeting,'' in which no program is sacred and every expenditure is up for review.
In response, the Democratic chairmen of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance committees have taken the unusual step of asking state agencies to send them financial data used in traditional budget planning. In the past, state administrations routinely shared that information.
The Democrats argue that it's important, at least as a benchmark, to know what it would cost to keep government on its current course.
``We weren't sure we were going to get it'' from the Allen administration, said Senate Finance Chairman Hunter B. Andrews, D-Hampton, explaining why he and Del. Robert B. Ball wrote an Oct. 2 letter asking agencies to supply the information by this week.
That letter caused a flurry of activity and consternation as agencies assessed political implications and pondered how to respond.
Allen, who took office in January 1994 pledging to downsize government, will present the first full-fledged budget prepared by his administration this winter. It will be debated and voted on by the General Assembly beginning in January.
Virginia's current two-year operating budget is $32 billion.
Allen's administration started the budget process last summer by asking every state agency to evaluate its mission by several measures.
Among them:
Is its work critical to the governor's initiatives and priorities?
Which five of its activities could most easily be privatized?
Which five could most easily be eliminated?
Which five could best be turned over to another agency?
Under the old system, said Robert W. Lauterberg, director of planning and budget, each agency began by inflating its current budget ``with the assumption that everything continued with business-as-usual.''
``We're not starting with that premise at all,'' he said.
But those questions also prompted concern from Democratic lawmakers who fear that Allen is set on dismantling Virginia's government.
``Based on his actions of cutting this, cutting that, I assume things are going to be substantially different,'' said Andrews.
The request by Andrews and Ball for data from the agencies prompted a perplexed reply from Jay Timmons, Allen's chief of staff.
Timmons called the request ``largely duplicative'' of data being gathered for the administration, and said ``the governor is conscious of the confusion and potential disruption resulting from this unprecedented legislative request.''
But he also promised to get Andrews and Ball what they want.
Much of the information was delivered in midweek. Money committee staffs said Friday that they are assessing it. by CNB