The governor’s choice
With budget proposal, Youngkin will set the tone for legislative session
Gov. Glenn Youngkin is expected to release his proposed two-year state budget on Wednesday, and it should make for illuminating reading. Facing a General Assembly controlled by Democrats, Virginia’s chief executive has a choice before him.
He can offer a spending plan in line with his previous proposals, heavy with tax cuts, and wage a pitched battle with the legislature. Or he can nod to how voters spoke at the polls last month and offer something that extends a hand to his opposition.
His decision will invariably shape how the General Assembly session proceeds in January. A gloomy financial conditions will make the budget process challenging, and it would be a welcome sight for the executive and legislative branches to actively seek common ground — on priorities such as mental health, public education and economic development — rather than allowing this important process to succumb to partisan grandstanding.
Leading up to November’s election, Youngkin crisscrossed the commonwealth stumping for Republican candidates in hopes of holding the slim GOP majority in the House and flipping the Senate from Democrats. When asked about his possible White House aspirations, he insisted his focus was on winning control of the General Assembly.
Voters had other ideas. They protected the slim Democratic margin in the Senate and handed over control of the House as well. The majorities were decided by the outcome in several tightly contested races, similar to Youngkin’s 2021 victory over Democrat Terry McAuliffe, with the Republican winning by less than 2% statewide.
Those two elections speak to Virginia’s political centrist predilections, and it should be a clarion call for the governor and lawmakers as they tackle their most important task next year: the biennial state budget.
That task already promises to be more challenging than in recent years when Virginia, flush with COVID emergency funds and higher-than-expected revenues, amassed a surplus of $11.4 billion. The arguments in Richmond centered on how to use that most effectively, with Youngkin and Republicans advocating for tax cuts
and Democrats calling for spending on a variety of fronts, most prominently public education.
With so much available cash, however, each side could reasonably secure a share for their priorities. The last two budgets included billions in tax cuts, as Youngkin sought, and funding for public schools, mental health and other pressing needs across the commonwealth that Democrats (and enough Republicans) wanted. Deals were struck and everyone went home happy.
But that ride is at an end. November presentations to the General Assembly’s “money committees” suggested Virginia would have sufficient funds to cover existing obligations and expected growth, with a little money left over. Concerns about an economic downturn persist, though, and officials must proceed carefully to avoid putting the commonwealth in perilous financial shape should one materialize.
That means permanent reductions in revenue, as would have resulted had Youngkin secured the corporate tax cut he sought this year, are a non-starter. Extravagant spending, even to address long neglected priorities, will also be a no-go. Caution will be the watchword.
The starting point for discussion comes Wednesday, when Youngkin formally presents his budget to lawmakers. Will he propose further tax cuts that would hamstring Virginia in a year or two (or sooner) or will he find those areas — child care, workforce development, education — where the two sides can work together to deliver for Virginians?
Of course, Youngkin cannot go it alone, and one hopes that Democrats will approach this legislative session with some humility and even magnanimity. They can accomplish important things next year, but the governor’s veto power means he cannot be ignored.
This dance is a familiar one in the commonwealth, where the chief executive is limited to a single four-year term. But Youngkin has an opportunity to shrug off expectations and lead, by working with the opposition on shared priorities that can make a lasting difference for the commonwealth’s future.
The choice is very much in his hands. Virginia awaits his decision on Wednesday.