Devolites-Davis Suffering

Faulty Assumptions

The old truism of “garbage in, garbage out” rings truer in politics and public policy than anywhere. Too often bad policy is driven by misguided principles or faulty assumptions. Take a look at the transportation bill debacle (which has created unelected taxing authorities, outrageous “abuser fees”, and unprecedented debt) as a prime example.

The primary assumptions that drove the funding discussion in Virginia were (and continue to be) that:

1) transportation should be funded by transportation-related revenue sources,
2) the areas of the state that directly benefit from transportation improvement should bear a greater burden, and
3) fees are preferable to taxes.

Each point elegant and compelling. And that’s precisely why they’ve cut through to inflict such devastation on the process. They read as simple, common-sense fact, rather than an argument begging for a very specific outcome. But allow me to take them on in turn:

No Gas Tax

With the closest thing you’ll ever see to consensus in Virginia politics the abuser fees provisions are very likely to be repealed in the next session. Now, as Chap asks, what are we going to replace that funding stream with?

There are a number of options including an increase in the income tax, sales tax, a renewed estate tax, gas tax, user fees, etc. (I’d be interested to see what the revenue and distribution effects would be if we raised the threshold for the top rate from $17,000 to $40,000 and simultaneously raised that rate from 5.75% to 6%- cutting taxes by .75% for all dollars earned between $5K-$40K, and raising taxes by .25% for all dollars earned over $40K.)

My first plea is for the leaders of the commonwealth to avoid what seems, at first blush, like an elegant solution: the gas tax. As I recently reported, the last several years have seen a promising revival of tax fairness. We’ve moved from having one of the most burdensome tax systems for the working poor to around average in the country over the past 7 years.

Why would we strengthen the flat tax aspects of our tax scheme now?

A Very Good Sign

NLS is reporting counts on the volunteer participation for political campaigns in the Fairfax City and Clifton parades. The most interesting news:

Fairfax- Chap creams Jeannemarie
Clifton- George slams Jay

Great job guys!

Chap In Top Form

Man, I really feel for poor Jeannemarie Devolites and her husband. Not only do they have to face re-election in an impossible district, they have to face off against one of the most impressive, tenacious campaigners in Virginia.

Last night I was at Chap’s big Young Lawyer’s event and he owned the night. And even without the assist from young lawyer mastermind Scott Surovell, State Senate mastermind Creigh Deeds, and “his excellency” Mark Warner.

Ms. Petersen Wants Ms. Davis’s Day Job

Mr. Don Upson
CEO, ICG Government Consulting
Tysons Corner, VA

Dear Mr. Upson:
I understand from the news that your firm offers a position as “consulting executive” with annual compensation in the amount of $80K for working at home approximately 10 hours a week. I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear that.
. . .

Remember ICG? They’re the guys that are paying Tom Davis’s wife- Senator Devolites Davis- almost $80,000 to work from her cell phone. Of course, they also just happened to have business before Tom’s committee…

And yesterday:

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) – a nonprofit watchdog group issued a report which stated that:

Thomas Davis used campaign funds to contribute to the political campaigns of his wife, state Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites-Davis. The report also claims Davis “used his position to benefit his wife’s employer,” the ICG Government consulting firm.

For more information: CREW “Family Affair” report

21-51: Ranking the State Senate

Kenton Ngo, the blogger prodigy, inspired me to write up my own list of which State Senate districts are most likely to switch hands this fall.

Likely Democratic Pickup
1. 34th District – Chap Petersen v. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis
Chap is doing everything right here. He’s raising enough money to be competitive, he’s working hard and he’s also running in a district which he has, in substantial part, already represented. But the bottom line is that the numbers in the district have gotten so far away from the Republicans. Tom Davis may try his tricks but they’re not going to work on a candidate like Chap who always works like he’s 20 points down.

2. 6th District – Ralph Northam v. Nick Rerras
The State GOP have known that Rerras is their weakest incumbent for some time. And now Northam has shown that he is willing and capable to put the fundraising work in to finish the job. This has to be the GOP’s most concerning race.

A Clean Start

Soon-to-be State Senator Chap Petersen has a new post discussing Virginia’s role in addressing global climate change. It’s refreshing that we’re actually talking broadly and ambitiously about the state’s role in resolving the issues of global warming. Only a few years ago it would have seemed a strange notion that the state can play an active part in addressing a global problem. But the renewed political commitment across this country has been so strong that I believe, given the right conditions, the will is there to achieve something truly meaningful.

It’s my opinion that a very simple first step would be to extend the 10% ethanol requirements for retail gas to all parts of Virginia, not just Richmond and the urban areas of NoVA and Hampton Roads. But as you might recall, Tim Kaine already tried to get this done but the provision was stripped from last year’s energy bill by the Republican Assembly. This is what is at stake in this fall’s election. If we win, the Senate will be in Democratic hands and passionate environmental advocates like Chap Petersen will lead the charge to placing Virginia at the forefront of this effort for our future. But if we lose, the issue will likely be buried for another 4 years.