RICHMOND — A dispute over tax cuts proposed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) derailed budget talks Tuesday among key House and Senate lawmakers, jeopardizing his administration’s goals for some $3.6 billion in excess state funds.
Virginia
Virginia budget negotiations collapse, leaving $3.6 billion in limbo
Republican leaders said Tuesday that Youngkin could call a special legislative session to try to force lawmakers to return to Richmond and hammer out a deal, but the governor seemed noncommittal when asked about the possibility by reporters at an unrelated public appearance.
“I am so disappointed that I do not have a budget on my desk and I candidly believe that this is a massive failing from the leadership in the Democrat party in the Senate,” Youngkin said, according to a transcript provided by his office.
A spokeswoman added later that “the governor is currently evaluating next steps.”
Democrats, in turn, blamed Youngkin for his insistence on cutting taxes at a time of economic uncertainty.
Senate Democrats “want to invest $2 billion in K-12 & mental health while House GOP wants to cut taxes on corporations so they pay a lower tax rate than individiuals & help the Gov’s presidential campaign,” state Sen. Scott A. Surovell (D-Fairfax) tweeted. “Sounds like the voters will get to decide this one.”
House budget negotiators had already backed down on Youngkin’s call for a corporate tax cut, participants said, but the impasse came over other proposed tax cuts that would reduce state revenue on a recurring basis. Senate negotiators preferred one-time tax rebates.
The lack of a deal creates uncertainty, particularly for school divisions that have not known what sort of increases or pay raises to expect for next year. But schools and state agencies will continue to operate as usual under the two-year budget passed in 2022. It’s the $3.6 billion in surplus funds that remains in limbo.
Youngkin had proposed using $1 billion for new tax cuts, on top of the $4 billion in tax cuts the General Assembly approved last year. The Republican-controlled House of Delegates approved budget amendments in line with Youngkin’s agenda, but the Democratic-controlled Senate approved amendments that instead used all the excess funding for priorities such as raises for teachers and state employees and increases in K-12 education spending.
Senate Democrats — and at least one Republican — balked at the idea of passing recurring tax cuts that would reduce state revenue heading into a possible economic downturn.
Top House budget negotiator Del. Barry D. Knight (R-Virginia Beach), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said the outlines of a compromise deal had been in place since February but had been on hold pending the June 20 primary elections.
Knight said he had agreed to scrap Youngkin’s proposal for a corporate tax cut, which Democrats in the Senate made clear they would never support; increase the standard income tax deduction to $9,000 from $8,000 for individual filers, and double that amount for married couples filing jointly; and rather than lower just the top income tax bracket, as Youngkin proposed, to instead slightly adjust all tax brackets to provide more benefit to low-income filers.
In addition to a handful of more minor recurring tax cuts for businesses and military veterans, Knight said he had proposed one-time rebates of $100 for individual taxpayers and $200 for married couples filing jointly. The rebates and tax cuts would have totaled roughly $900 million in each of the next two years, Knight said, with a decrease in revenue continuing into the future.
He said he told his Senate counterparts — Senate Finance and Appropriations co-chairs Janet D. Howell (D-Fairfax) and George L. Barker (D-Fairfax) — that if they went along with those tax cuts, the Senate could have a similar amount for its priorities, such as colleges, schools and mental health services.
“That would still leave $1.5 billion in the middle,” Knight said, for yet more big-ticket items such as teacher and state employee pay raises. “We would put in everything we both want.”
According to Knight, he had an informal agreement with both Howell and Barker on that deal. They didn’t make it public or take it to fellow budget conferees for a vote, Knight said, because Barker faced a heated primary election and was politically vulnerable.
“His opponent would have used it against him,” Knight said. “I wanted him to have a fair fight in his primary race, and I was hoping George would prevail.”
Barker acknowledged sharing concerns with Knight that striking a deal before the June 20 Democratic primary could hurt him in his race with Stella Pekarsky, who had painted him as too willing to compromise with Republicans.
But Barker said he’d never agreed to any deal with Knight.
“Barry put together a proposal back in February and he presented it,” Barker said. “I listened to what he had to say, I understood what he was saying but after he finished, I did not say anything. I did that very intentionally because I did not want anyone to misremember what I was saying. Not only was there never any agreement voiced, I didn’t say anything. I just kept my mouth shut on that. Janet was maybe a little more open to it than I was. I don’t know if she would say she agreed to it or not.”
After Barker lost the nomination to Pekarsky, Knight said he called Howell and Barker to arrange a meeting in Richmond to finalize the budget deal. Howell — who is not running for reelection — was traveling outside the country, so Barker planned to handle the negotiations on her behalf.
At a lunch meeting in Richmond on Monday, Knight said, Barker told him he would not support the compromise.
Barker said in an interview with The Washington Post that he worried the House plan for permanent tax cuts would put the state on uncertain financial footing and jeopardize its coveted AAA bond rating, which makes it cheaper to borrow money. He also said he felt the Republicans’ plan to adjust the income tax brackets would offer “a huge windfall” to the wealthiest Virginians.
He said he stayed mum about those concerns in earlier meetings with Knight because he was still mulling things over.
“I wanted time to think through things and make sure I was making the right decision. I wanted to make sure we weren’t doing something that has at least the potential for jeopardizing things long term,” Barker said.
Barker and Knight met again Tuesday and Barker offered an alternative deal: no ongoing tax cuts, but a doubling of the one-time rebates.
That would cost a similar amount — roughly $900 million — but only for one year.
“At that point, he was clearly not in the mood to negotiate with us,” Barker said of his House counterpart. “We agreed to part ways and go figure out where to go from there.”
“I’m very frustrated,” Knight said later Tuesday. “I had the rug pulled out from under me.”
He sent a letter to Barker on Tuesday afternoon, offering to meet again.
One Republican negotiator for the Senate, Emmett W. Hanger Jr. (R-Augusta), said he shared Barker’s concern about what permanent tax cuts could do to the state’s financial position.
“We can afford it right now. We know that,” Hanger said. “But we have to temper the fact that we’re experiencing good times now with the fact that a lot of the revenue occurred because of the generosity of the federal government during covid.”
Hanger said the two sides are not all that far apart and was optimistic that they can overcome their differences. “There’s really nothing that can’t be worked out,” he said.
The West Virginia Mountaineers (4-2) will meet the No. 24 Arizona Wildcats in the third place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis midseason tournament for the sixth meeting between the two programs.
West Virginia vs. Arizona Series History
Arizona leads 2-3
Last Meeting: March 28, 2008 (NCAA Tournament) WVU 75-65
When: Friday, November 29
Location: Paradise Island, Bahamas, Imperial Arena (3,900)
Tip-off: 3:00 p.m. EST
Stream: ESPN2
Announcers: Beth Mowins and Debbie Antonelli
Radio: Tony Caridi (PBP), Brad Howe (analyst) Mountaineer Sports Network from Learfield IMG College(Radio affiliates)
WVU Game Notes
– West Virginia was scheduled to play in the 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis. The tournament was moved to Sioux Falls, S.D., due to COVID, and the Mountaineers won the renamed Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic.
– WVU is 45-16 in in-season tournaments since 2007.
– With a win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU defeated a Top 5 AP team for the second consecutive season. Last season, the Mountaineers downed No. 3 Kansas in Morgantown, 91-85.
– Prior to the overtime win over No. 3 Gonzaga, WVU had lost six straight overtime games.
– This is WVU’s fourth trip outside the United States and Puerto Rico to play a regular season game. WVU played in Cancun in 2013 and 2019 and opened the season in Germany in the 2017 Armed Forces Classic.
– West Virginia is the only team in the country that has two players on the same team who averaged more than 20 points per game from last season — Tucker DeVries (21.6 ppg) and Jayden Stone (20.8 ppg)
– West Virginia is 201-55 against nonconference teams in regular season games in the last 21 seasons.
– The Mountaineers have posted a winning nonconference record in 31 of the last 32 seasons.
– WVU is 265-99 in its last 362 games against unranked teams, including winners of 148 of its last 180 at the WVU Coliseum.
– This is the 116th season and 122nd year overall for WVU basketball, which began in 1903.
– Darian DeVries, who led Drake to six consecutive 20-win seasons and has a career .731 winning percentage as a head coach, was named the 23rd head men’s basketball coach at West Virginia University on March 24, 2024.
– DeVries has a record of 154-57 (.731) in seven seasons as a head coach, including a 59-16 (.787) mark in the last two-plus seasons.
– This past August, the men’s basketball team went to Italy for a 10-day tour and won all three of its games against international competition.
– West Virginia returns just 2.8 percent of its scoring from last season’s team (Ofri Naveh).
– The Mountaineers are led by a pair of transfers in Tucker DeVries (Drake) and Javon Small (Oklahoma State). Last season, DeVries was named an Associated Press All-American Honorable Mention selection, while Small earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors.
– In addition, Eduardo Andre (Fresno State), Joseph Yesufu (Washington State), Sencire Harris (Illinois), Amani Hansberry (Illinois) and Jayden Stone (Detroit Mercy) will all see considerable action this season.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the 20-member Julius Erving Preseason Watch List, giving annually to the nation’s top small forward.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the preseason Naismith Trophy Men’s College Player of the Year Watch List.
– Tucker DeVries was named to the John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Preseason Watch List.
West Virginia got off to a hot start at the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis by knocking off undefeated Gonzaga 86-78 in overtime in their first-round matchup. The Mountaineers have received strong performances to begin the season from two upperclassman transfers: Javon Small and Tucker DeVries.
With each player delivering standout performances, it’s time to start considering them seriously as draft prospects.
Let’s take a closer look at their outings in this big win and dive into their seasons as a whole up to this point.
Tucker DeVries finished this game with a stuffed stat line of 16 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and four blocks. This level of versatility clearly illustrates the type of player he is, as he looked solid in nearly every aspect of the game. He has good positional size at 6-foot-7 and plays with a very high IQ on both ends of the floor. His defensive impact was especially noticeable, as he consistently made impactful plays, including a steal that led to free throws to tie the game at the end of regulation. DeVries finished the second half on a 5-0 run, which gave West Virginia momentum to capture the game in overtime.
DeVries has had a solid all-around season leading up to this performance, averaging 13.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, two assists, 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks, with shooting splits of 36.6%/40.7%/81.3%. If he were to be drafted following this season, it would likely be in the second round, but his versatile play style is very promising.
Javon Small led the Mountaineers in scoring during this upset victory, contributing 31 points on impressive shooting splits of 50%/40%/81.8%. In addition to his scoring, he also grabbed seven rebounds, dished out two assists and added one steal and one block. Small is a quick and slippery guard who stayed in attack mode throughout the game, translating well into fast-break opportunities. Rarely staying in one spot on offense, Small kept the floor spaced and forced his defender to fight through traffic to keep up with him. His offensive approach was patient as he waited for his defender to get off balance before attacking.
Before this game, Small had averaged 15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, four assists and three steals. He leads the Mountaineers in points, assists, and steals, while providing a noticeable spark on a nightly basis. Small is now at his third school in four years, with similar statistics in each of his previous two seasons. As an older guard, it is not guaranteed that he will be drafted, but if this level of productivity continues throughout the season, he may receive an opportunity to prove himself at the next level.
Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
The rivalry matchup between Virginia Tech and Virginia is nearly 48 hours away and it is a big matchup for both teams. The Hokies and the Cavaliers are both 5-6 and needing a win to make a bowl game. The loser will be getting a headstart on 2025 instead of playing in the postseason.
At the start of the year, Virginia Tech was being talked about as one of the biggest surprise teams not just in the ACC, but in the country. This team’s biggest goals have gone away, but they still have an opportunity to reach a bowl game for the second straight season. That should still be a big deal to the program, but on the other side, the Cavaliers are trying to make a bowl game for the first time under Tony Elliott. They are going to be fired up about playing in this game and having a chance to make a bowl game, so Virginia Tech can’t take it for granted, no matter their past success vs Virginia.
So what are the keys to a win for Virginia Tech on Saturday?
Before you could even blink on Saturday night, Virginia Tech was trailing Duke 14-0 thanks to two long touchdown plays and the Blue Devils have not been a very explosive offense this season. Virginia has found a way to put points on teams like Clemson and Louisville this season and has improved since last year. The Hokies’ pass rush was non-existent on Saturday vs Duke, finishing with no sacks and being unable to disrupt Duke quarterback Maalik Murphy. They will have to be able to play better on Saturday if they want to avoid the upset.
It is still up in the air who is going to play quarterback for the Hokies on Saturday night, but whoever it is would benefit from a big game from one of the nation’s best running backs. Tuten had 84 yards on 19 carries last week, but Virginia Tech might need more than that on Saturday when the face the Cavaliers.
Our own RJ Schafer wrote this about the quarterbavck situation heading into Saturday’s game:
“Brent Pry listed both Kyron Drones and Collin Schlee as questionable ahead of the historic matchup. He added that both will practice, although very limited, and they could “just be watching” from the sidelines.
Coach Pry also added that Virginia Tech is preparing four quarterbacks to be ready to play this weekend, including Davi Belfort, a freshman quarterback from Brazil, a country which could begin to be the future of American college football.
Whoever plays this weekend is going to have to have to manage the game and not turn the ball over. I think the offense is going rely on the run game heavily this weekend due to that.
Additional Links:
Virginia Tech Football Releases Depth Chart Ahead of Matchup Against Virginia
Virginia Tech Football: PFF Grades and Snap Counts For Every Player in Saturday’s Loss to Duke
Virginia Tech Football: Updated Bowl Projections For The Hokies Heading Into Final Game
Detroit, MI2 mins ago
Video recap: Detroit Lions hang on for first win on Thanksgiving since 2016
San Francisco, CA8 mins ago
San Francisco firefighters help cook family's turkey following oven fire
Dallas, TX15 mins ago
Game Day Guide: Stars vs Avalanche | Dallas Stars
Miami, FL18 mins ago
Packers freeze out Dolphins as Miami’s cold weather woes continue
Boston, MA21 mins ago
New York, Boston, Miami, Newark, Washington Airports and More Report Over 1,600 Thanksgiving Travel Delays as Winter Storms Wreak Havoc Across US: New Updates You Need to Know – Travel And Tour World
Colorado2 years ago
Colorado Rockies game no. 116 thread: Zac Gallen vs José Ureña
Midwest3 years ago
See it: Tesla crashes into Columbus convention center at 70 mph
Videos1 year ago
Why Marjorie Taylor Greene was ‘kicked out’ of the Freedom Caucus according to Rep. Buck
South2 years ago
Fox News Politics: Georgia the whole day through
South3 years ago
Death of missing Oregon girl found in stream ruled homicide
Politics5 hours ago
Texas could bus migrants directly to ICE for deportation instead of sanctuary cities under proposed plan
World6 hours ago
Russia and Ukraine to exchange more children after Qatar-brokered deal
News6 hours ago
Vito the pug is the first of his breed to win National Dog Show's top prize
News12 hours ago
Maps Pinpoint Where Democrats Lost Ground Since 2020 in 11 Big Cities
Politics13 hours ago
Biden thankful for smooth transition of power, urges Trump to 'rethink' tariffs on Canada and Mexico
-
Science1 week agoTrump nominates Dr. Oz to head Medicare and Medicaid and help take on 'illness industrial complex'
-
Health6 days agoHoliday gatherings can lead to stress eating: Try these 5 tips to control it
-
Health4 days agoCheekyMD Offers Needle-Free GLP-1s | Woman's World
-
Science3 days agoDespite warnings from bird flu experts, it's business as usual in California dairy country
-
Technology2 days agoLost access? Here’s how to reclaim your Facebook account
-
Science1 week agoAlameda County child believed to be latest case of bird flu; source unknown
-
Sports1 week agoBehind Comcast's big TV deal: a bleak picture for once mighty cable industry
-
Entertainment1 day agoReview: A tense household becomes a metaphor for Iran's divisions in 'The Seed of the Sacred Fig'