Budget & Revenue

The state’s next two year budget is now before state legislators. On Sunday, they will reveal their amendments to the budget introduced by former Governor Terry McAuliffe in December. The proposal before them makes important progress in a number of key areas of support for Virginians. What happens next will influence whether more Virginians have access to affordable health care, whether Virginia’s schools have more adequate and equitable state funding, and whether the state will have enough revenue to invest in families and communities. 

There’s so much good TV these days that some have said we’re in a new Golden Age of TV. That’s up for debate, but one fact is undeniable: more and more of our state tax dollars are subsidizing TV productions despite little evidence of lasting economic gains.

When it comes to helping working families, the federal earned income tax credit (EITC) is one of the biggest success stories we have, lifting three million children out of poverty each year. The credit provides extra support to millions of workers and their families, including over 600,000 working households across Virginia. For families struggling to make ends meet, the EITC helps them put food on the table, pay utility bills, and provide opportunities for their children. And research shows that the positive impacts of the credit can last a lifetime, extending even into adulthood for the children of families who received the credit. 

The House Appropriations and Senate Finance committees are currently considering the governor’s 2018-2020 budget (FYs 2019 and 2020) and amendments to the budget for FY 2018. Click here or on the image below for our summary level assessment of certain key changes in general fund revenues and spending proposed by the governor for FY 2019 and FY 2020 compared to the amended budget which passed in Spring 2017.

Virginia’s current revenue system isn’t keeping up with changes and growth in the overall economy, and that’s putting the future prosperity of families and businesses at risk.

It might be called the Tax Cut and Jobs Act, but neither aspects of this title are necessarily true or likely for many Virginia families.

Lawmakers want to have sufficient state revenue to build up reserve funds and invest in ongoing commitments to education and healthcare. Cleaning up costly tax credits needs to be part of the equation.

What we need is tax reform that ensures everyone contributes their fair share to build the thriving communities that we all want to live in. To get there though, we can’t afford to provide lucrative tax giveaways to those who need it least while providing a relative pittance to average Virginians.

Issue platforms by the current candidates for Virginia Governor, including Republican candidate Ed Gillespie, Libertarian candidate Cliff Hyra, and Democratic candidate Ralph Northam, include proposals to modify or eliminate Virginia’s local business taxes, modify Virginia’s individual income tax, and eliminate the state portion of Virginia’s sales tax on groceries.