Published: November 24, 2009 01:54 pm      

Tough road ahead — Revenue projections remain dim for Va.

It doesn’t look like Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell is going to inherit a financially sound Commonwealth. Hopes of a full-fledged economic recovery in Virginia were dimmed Monday following a meeting between Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and his Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates. Monday’s meeting was the first chance for a panel of state lawmakers and business leaders to get a look at fiscal projections for the state’s upcoming budget, and the news wasn’t exactly encouraging.

Kaine is expected to use the most conservative revenue figures updated at the end of the month to include November tax receipts as the foundation of his proposed biennial budget, which he will present to the General Assembly’s money committees Dec. 18, the Associated Press reported.

While the governor didn’t immediately disclose the figures presented at Monday’s meeting, he did say the estimates the council heard were largely comparable to information presented last week to General Assembly budget writers. Analysts projected that Virginia needs to cut at least $250 million more from its budget, and face an anticipated shortfall of nearly $3 billion for the next two years.

Kaine said Monday he wouldn’t rule out proposing tax increases to help preserve core services, Virginia’s AAA bond rating and its competitiveness with other states. The second round of deep budget cuts ordered by the governor in September, which included significant funding reductions to higher education, also are expected to carry over into the 2011 to 2012 fiscal years.

McDonnell said he and Kaine planned to meet to discuss the state’s financial picture. McDonnell, who cruised to victory in what was largely a Republican landslide in Virginia, reiterated Monday that he would rule out raising taxes.

We wish McDonnell, and members of the General Assembly, the best of luck in working to jump-start the state’s troubled economy. The Southwest Virginia region has already been forced to endure troubling budget cuts over the past year. A number of quality programs were lost or significantly reduced as a result of the budget crisis, including the Day Report Center in Tazewell County, the Virginia Wilderness Institute in Buchanan County, the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Tazewell Residency Office and several vital rest areas along the Interstate 81 corridor.

It is our hope that the Southwest Virginia region can weather additional budget cuts as lawmakers work to put the Commonwealth back on the road to recovery.