Virginia Republican Creed: . . > > Link To Virginia State Republican Party
We Believe . . .
That the free enterprise system is the most productive supplier of human needs and economic justice
That all individuals are entitled to equal rights, justice, and opportunities and should assume their responsibilities as citizens in a free society
That fiscal responsibility and budgetary restraints must be exercised at all levels of government
That the Federal Government must preserve individual liberty by observing constitutional limitations
That peace is best preserved through a strong national defense
That faith in God, as recognized by our Founding Fathers, is essential to the moral fibre of the Nation
© Copyright 1975, 1997 by Republican Party of Virginia, Inc.

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Legislators aren't asking the right questions about Gov. Mark Warner's proposal to raise taxes by $1 billion.
Let's start with an obvious one. Why should the General Assembly raise taxes to fund a tax cut?
Thus far, Warner hasn't given a reason good enough to justify paying bureaucrats to collect the taxes only to send the money out again as car tax reimbursements.
Another question is whether there is room for additional cuts in state spending to avoid raising taxes by $1 billion. A year ago, Warner claimed that he could reduce spending by $1 billion a year by implementing most of the recommendations of his Commission on Efficiency and Effectiveness chaired by former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder. What happened to that claim?
Yet another question is whether the program requests Warner points to as justification for a $1 billion tax hike can be satisfied just as well through a more cost effective approach or whether those requests warrant funding at all. Virginia taxpayers deserve a thorough analysis of these requests.
Warner's thinking is selective. He is concerned about Virginia's antiquated tax code, but has apparently given no thought to Virginia's antiquated programs. That's putting the cart before the horse.
Let's look at concrete examples. First, should Virginia blindly spend more taxpayer money on the same old transportation programs? Is there a better way?
In 1986, then-Gov. Gerald Baliles proposed a massive tax increase for a highway solution to congestion. The new money from that tax increase simply made the overall problem worse, rendered alternative solutions far more costly and difficult to implement in the future, and accelerated the process of suburban sprawl that compounded the mobility problems in Virginia's most heavily populated regions.
Why would we want to repeat that?
Surely, the General Assembly should consider some bold transportation alternatives.
The present transportation system is inefficient. One reason is the way it's funded through a mix of general sales tax and various user taxes, particularly the gas tax. Although dubbed a "user tax," the gas tax has not produced an efficient transportation system. Only charges directly associated with a particular trip will achieve that objective. The only way to make transportation more efficient is to introduce the discipline of the marketplace, which involves private investment risk and consumer choice. If Virginia chooses that route, the requirement for public funding will be dramatically reduced.
Another program area due to get hundreds of millions of dollars from the Warner tax hike is public education. Spending in this area has been growing at a rate ten times greater than enrollment increases. How was that money spent and what were the results?
Last Aug. 31, the Daily Press published a survey of 13 school divisions which concluded that higher pay for teachers and administrators has little effect on student achievement. Yet, Warner, school administrators and teachers' unions simply assume that higher pay means better instruction. As previously argued in this space, all of the assumptions underlying the state's Standards of Quality for public schools should be challenged, not accepted on faith.
The same is true in Medicaid and higher education. What assumptions drive Medicaid spending increases? How much of the anticipated growth in college enrollment has already been addressed through the $900 million bond financing authorized by voters in 2002?
There is no justification for the current clamor over which taxes to raise when the case for a spending increase hasn't even been made.
Pat McSweeney, who practices law in Richmond, is former Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia.

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Citizen Actions:

Please contact your senators and delegates (especially the Republicans) and tell them no new taxes.
A tax overhaul that is truly "revenue neutral" is certainly acceptable. However, be careful.
When they try to raise one tax while giving us a 100% car tax cut, don't buy it. The car tax cut is already enacted and is just waiting for state revenues to increase to kick in.
Any new taxes need to be countered by a NEW cut in another tax. We have to hold the line if our party is going to have any principles let to stand on at all.
Please contact your legislators ASAP and let them know of your concerns.

If you don't know who your state representative is,
log onto the State Board of Elections website at http://www.sbe.state.va.us > > > Link
And Click on "where do I vote."
Fill in your address and your voting location, and it will give you your state senate, delegate and congressional district.
Or, quickly: http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy/constinput.asp > > > . . . Link

To Quickly Express Your Opinion:
The General Assembly has a toll-free opinion phone lines if you just want to express your opinion and have it forwarded to your senator and delegate.
Call 1-800-889-0229 (outside of Richmond). If in Richmond, call 698-1990 for the General Assembly Constituent Viewpoint operator.

Remember that the operators are trained to identify a caller's legislator by his or hers home address.

To speak directly to your representative or their aide, call as follows:
(NOTE: If you live in the Hampton Roads area, please Click Here for specific info on contacting your legislators)

Senators
(804) 698-75XX, where the XX is the Senate District.
Example - Senator Marty Williams is in the 1st Senatorial District. His number is (804) 698-7501.
To email your senator, send to districtXX@sov.state.va.us
Again, XX is the Senatorial District. Senator Williams would be
district01@sov.state.va.us (please note that there is no period after us on the end).
Delegates
(804) 698-10XX. Example - Delegate Tom Gear is in the 91st House District. His number is (804) 698-1091.
To email your delegate, send to del_lastname@house.state.va.us (an underscore (_) goes between the "del" and the "lastname").
Tom Gear's email address is del_gear@house.state.va.us (again, no period after us).

E-Mail Listing
House of Delegates Email List: http://dela.state.va.us/dela/MemBios.nsf/MWebsiteEL?OpenView . . > > Link
Senate of Virginia Email List: http://sov.state.va.us/SenatorDB.nsf/$$Viewtemplate%2Bfor%2BWEmailList? OpenForm . . > > Link

Postal Mail
Senators: Address the envelope to: The Honorable XXX, Senate of Virginia, P.O. Box 396, Richmond, VA 23219.
Delegates in the House: Address the envelope to: The Honorable XXX, House of Delegates, P.O. Box 406, Richmond, Virginia 23218

CALL YOUR LEGISLATOR TODAY

WARNING: After the November 4, 2003 Election, Republicans will renegade on their "No Tax Hike" pledge to pursue legislation during the upcoming 2004 General Assembly to increase taxes for more revenue.

If citizens remain silent, so will the candidates! Citizens must demand tax reform!
If citizens remain silent, there will be tax increases after the November 4th election!

Citizens must demand tax reform to update a code that has not changed over 20 years. The code is outdated and full of inequities.
If you ask why? Consider the following:

1. The State cannot complete the car tax because of increased government spending in the middle of the present flat economy.
2. The transportation system is losing ground and the local municipalities, such as Virginia Beach, are picking up the tab on road construction and upgrades, because monies allocated to transportation has been pulled by the Governor to pay for government operations.

Currently, 75% of the state general fund budget provides funding for education, Medicaid and public safety. The remaining 25% provides funding for the court system to environmental related items to economic development.

The REAL Issue:
There is no political will to continue streamlining the state government, especially the 10,000 plus employees in VDOT.
There is no political will to cut taxes when industry and businesses are pouring monies into campaigns of incumbents.
The citizens are again being duped!
Since there is no political will to cut taxes, the Governor will submit a package to increase taxes for additional revenue to support increased government spending and other "pork" related projects.

WARNING: Our Legislators are silent on Tax Code Reform -- the calmness in the eye of the storm to increase taxes.

CITIZEN ACTIONS:
Call your legislator and ask for their position on Tax Code Reform or increased government spending.
Call your legislator and ask for their position on cutting taxes.
Then, vote your conscience.

Fiscal responsibility includes cutting taxes.

Today's citizens are over-taxed!

The State Tax Code needs to be re-structured to include implementation of new taxes in the following areas:
The Legal Business - they pay no taxes. Keep in mind there are many lawyers who serve as legislators in the General Assembly and are very protective of taxing their businesses. It is time that citizens turn the tables on the legal businesses.
The vehicle repair business - they pay no taxes on the actual repair service. Customers pay taxes on the repair parts only.

The Tax Code needs to be re-structured to make the Code more reflective of today's economy.

Eliminate the car tax and food tax. Cars and food are essential products for today's living.

CALL YOUR LEGISLATOR TODAY