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Virginia's Budget and Taxes On August 6, 2006, Charlottesville's local paper, The Daily Progress, in its feature editorial discussed the supposed incongruity of a poll which showed that voters wanted more money spent on transportation, but did not want additional taxes or fees to pay for the additional money. The editorial writer's assumption was that in order to have more money going to transportation, the state would need to raise additional taxes and fees. No thought was given to the possibility that the state could reduce spending in some areas while increasing funds for transportation. My view of the results is not that voters do not know what they are talking about, but that they have a different view of budget priorities. Virginia's general fund budget went up by more than $1 billion from fiscal 2005 to fiscal 2006. Transportation funding from the general fund decreased by $132 million. Payments to non-state agencies went from $25 thousand to $29.6 million. Funding for commerce and trade went from $84.8 million to $686.7 million. Funding for education increased by $478.2 million. Funding for public safety increased by $54.7 million. Funding for natural resources went from $117.6 million to $250.6 million. Spending on Health and human services increased by $242.6 million. Virginia's general fund budget went up by $2 billion from fiscal 2006 to fiscal 2007. Transportation funding from the general fund rebounded to $490.3 million, an increase of $305.1 million from fiscal year 2006, but only $172.9 million from fiscal 2005. Payments to non-state agencies increased again to $36.7 million. Funding for commerce and trade decreased substantially to $116 million. Funding for education increased by $963.6 million. Funding for public safety increased by $165 million. Funding for natural resources increased by $70 million. Spending on Health and human services increased by $388.1 million. Many people view the principal roll of government to be that of providing for the basic necessities which cannot be met by individuals or private efforts including charities. These core services would generally be viewed as public safety, public transportation, education and health. Looking at where the increases are going in the above categories, education, safety and health are doing well, while transportation is lagging behind. Virginia's revenues for 2005 exceeded budgeted amounts by $544 million. Of this, only $26.2 million was spent on transportation, and that was to reimburse the transportation trust fund for diverted revenues. To me the above shows that Virginia has serious problems with priorities. Virginia does not have a tax problem, but a spending problem. Until it is proven that spending and increases in other areas, including substantial spending upon non-state agencies, are essential, I am convinced that the needed increases in transportation funding can be obtained by rearranging budget priorities. |
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