Stuart Slams Senate Dems Over Budget Impasse

The following was taken from letter from Va. Sen. Richard H. Stuart that was distributed to constituents:

This week, the General Assembly experienced a very dubious first. For the first time since Virginia first instituted its biennial budget process in 1920, the General Assembly found itself without a budget bill to consider.

Senate Democrats, who have been insisting that the Senate reorganize before they will agree to vote for any budget proposal, followed through on that threat and killed the budget bill on Wednesday. Their action left the General Assembly in unchartered legislative territory with no clear way to resolve the impasse.

Last week, I explained that although the Lieutenant Governor can break ties in the General Assembly, the Constitution does not give him the power to do so on enacting the state budget. Since passage of a budget requires 21 votes in the Senate, at least one Democrat and every Republican would have to vote for a spending plan. So far, every Republican has voted in favor of the Senate budget proposal, but no Democrat would do so.

This is not the first time Virginia has experienced a budget impasse, but the situation is much more serious in this instance. During the previous stalemates of 2001, 2004, and 2006, the General Assembly could not agree on the terms of a budget agreement, but negotiations continued over the specific details of a budget bill.

This time there is no budget bill to discuss or the terms of which can be negotiated; Senate Democrats killed it.

Without a budget bill, it will be very challenging to reach an agreement. Making the situation much more daunting, Senate Democrats objections are not about spending priorities. Instead, they want to reorganize the Senate, despite it having been organized back on January 11. Their complaints are about the politics of the Senate, not the policies and priorities in the budget.

By derailing the budget process, Senate Democrats are effectively holding every core service the Commonwealth provides its citizens hostage. Frustratingly, the Senate budget plan was crafted with the extensive input and active collaboration of Senate Democrats. As a result, the Senate budget proposal has more funding for K-12 public education, health care, social services, and local governments than the plan originally introduced by Governor McDonnell or the one approved by the House of Delegates.

Is there a way out of this situation? At this point, it’s hard to see one. If the Senate Democrats continue to insist on holding the budget hostage until their demands unrelated to the budget are met, this could drag on for quite a while. That’s why many media outlets were not overstating the situation when they said a government shutdown was possible.

Since the Senate Democrats will not agree to proceed with any budget, the House of Delegates – with unanimous support of House Democrats – introduced a new budget for the General Assembly to consider. That will start the process all over again, although there’s no guarantee we’ll see a different result. I’ll have more to report on this matter next week.

LEGISLATION

The continued budget impasse hasn’t stopped the General Assembly from enacting other legislation. This week, my bill (SB239) passed in the House. This bill allows reports of suspected child abuse or neglect to be made to law-enforcement agencies. The bill also adds individuals associated with or employed by any public organization responsible for the care, custody, or control of children to the list of individuals required to report suspected child abuse or neglect. The bill reduces the time allowed for reporting suspected child abuse or neglect by a mandated reporter from 72 hours to as soon as possible but not longer than 24 hours. In addition, it increases the fine for subsequent reporting failures to at least $1,000. In cases evidencing acts of rape, sodomy, or object sexual penetration an individual who fails to make the required report would be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

VISITORS

Even with just one week remaining before the scheduled close of the 2012 General Assembly session, visitors continued to come to Richmond to see their government at work. This week I had the pleasure of meeting with several folks from the Prince William County Medical Society.

With just one week left, everything is winding down fast. I’ll have a wrap-up for you next week, along with a report on the current budget standoff and the prospects for its resolution.

As always, I appreciate the opportunity you have given me to serve you in the State Senate. You can contact me by sending an e-mail to [email protected], or by sending a letter to me at Senate of Virginia, PO Box 396, Richmond VA 23218-0396. You can also call me at 804-698-7528