Governor Kaine Announces Action on General Assembly Legislation
RICHMOND – Governor Timothy M. Kaine today announced that he has completed action on the 889 bills passed by the 2008 General Assembly. Legislators are scheduled to consider the Governor's proposed amendments during a reconvened session on Wednesday, April 23, 2008.
The Governor has proposed 41 amendments to the budget bill, many of them technical or clarifying in nature. The majority of the Governor's amendments involve changes in language and will have no effect on revenues or expenditures. Only six of the amendments to House Bill 30 require increased state spending and the net fiscal impact of the spending amendments totals $8.9 million
"This budget makes critical investments in efforts to keep Virginia moving forward, while exercising the fiscal responsibility that tough economic times demand," Governor Kaine said. "I believe this bill, with the appropriate amendments, will achieve many of the objectives I have set for education, health care, and economic development."
Amendments include:
- Adding behavioral health drugs to the Medicaid preferred drug list, allowing Medicaid clients to use these less expensive medications. This move will save taxpayers $1.5 million over the biennium without any impact on the health of Medicaid clients.
- $4 million over the biennium in incentives for SRI international. This funding is vital to the establishment of the SRI projects. The dollars will be used to recruit the researchers needed to keep this high-tech economic development project on target.
- Moving $1.5 million for the modeling and simulation center at Old Dominion University from the second year of the biennium to the first, bringing the total first year appropriation to $3 million. This amendment was sought by ODU.
- $5 million for the Civil War Historic Site Preservation Fund. The money will be used for grants to private non-profit organizations to preserve endangered Civil War sites. The non-profits will be required to provide at least $2 for every $1 from the fund.
- $525,000 each year to provide enhanced operational support for the Virginia Outdoors Foundation to respond to requests for assistance from landowners so that they may put their land under conservation easement in a timely manner. Purchase of voluntary conservation easements is the most cost-effective way for the Commonwealth to protect open space.
- $200,000 for operating costs at the Daniel Boone Visitor Center.
- $100,000 for the Virginia Career Education Foundation to manage the Commonwealth Scholars and the Governor's Exemplary Standards Award Program for Career and Technical Education.
- $16,887 for the correctional bed space impact associated with HB113 and SB368, which increase, from a Class 6 felony to a Class 4 felony, the penalty for failing to heed the signal of a law enforcement officer to bring a vehicle to a stop and trying to elude police if such action resulted in the death of a law enforcement officer. It also provides $12,475 for the correctional bed space impact associated with SB284, which increases the penalty for assaulting a Department of Motor Vehicles' law enforcement officer from a misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony.
- Changing language to provide eligibility to the Family Access to Medical Insurance Security Plan to include immediate coverage for the birth of a newborn of a FAMIS enrollee for up to two months after birth, since the mother has already demonstrated eligibility to participate in FAMIS. This will make FAMIS consistent with Medicaid.
- Changing language to authorize an increase in Medicaid rates for ambulance providers. Considering the providers already are paid much less than market rates, an increase in their rates is appropriate and will avoid any potential impact to service. The increase would be paid from balances in other underutilized Medicaid services.
- Allow the Secretary of Health to use up to $500,000 each year in funds recovered from private health insurance for public health services to match, dollar for dollar, a private donation to establish a pilot health insurance program in Hampton Roads. The pilot program will offer health insurance coverage for low-income, uninsured workers employed by small businesses. The employer and employee would each cover one-third of the cost, with the remaining third, up to $75 per month, paid by the pilot program.
- Changing language to clarify that new and renovated state-owned facilities must be designed and constructed consistent with energy performance standards at least as stringent at the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED rating system or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's/Department of Energy's "Energy Star" rating. This makes the budget language consistent with that in Governor Kaine's Executive Order 48 which specifies state government energy policy.
Other Bill Amendments
Payday lending
Governor Kaine proposed technical amendments to HB12 (Oder)/ SB588 (Puckett). The amendments will not change the substance of the legislation.
Animal Welfare
The Governor proposed amendments to HB538 (Orrock). This is the "puppy mills" legislation. The amendment changes the enactment date from July 1, 2009 to January 1, 2009. There are several other technical amendments to the bill that do not affect the substance of the legislation.
Energy and Environment
Governor Kaine proposed amendments to SB464 (Whipple). This bill creates the Virginia Commission on Energy and Environment. The Governor's amendments direct the Commission to work with the Department of Environmental Quality to establish a voluntary greenhouse gas reporting system. Under this system, DEQ will request that all stationary sources of air pollutants that are required to report emissions under the Air Pollution Control Act include greenhouse gas emissions under the report. The system would also require DEQ to request annual information from the Department of Transportation regarding annual vehicle miles traveled, traffic trends, and characteristics of vehicles. DEQ would provide the Commission with the information gathered annually.
The Governor also proposed an amendment to SB596 (Norment) that would set as the official policy of the Commonwealth a goal of reducing the projected increase in energy use in Virginia over the next fifteen years by 40%. The 40% conservation goal matches the goal set by the Virginia Energy Plan, approved by the Governor last summer.
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