David Toscano – Page 58

1st Floor Speech as House Democratic Leader

January 11, 2012 by David Toscano

The 2012 General Assembly Session got under way on January 11, 2012, at 12:00 noon. Delegate David J. Toscano gave his first floor speech today as the new House Democratic Leader. Below are his comments. You may view the speech here.

“I rise today with a new role in this chamber, but not with a new perspective on politics. That perspective is grounded in 12 years of service in local government and 6 years in this chamber. It is a perspective that rests on the principle that I think all of us share — that we should represent our constituents to the best of our ability. But, it is also broader than that.

Often times, we can get too parochial in our positions down here. In my view, we should also try to represent our regions, and, perhaps even more importantly, our entire Commonwealth. We are called a Commonwealth for good reason. We are one of only four states with such a moniker and it is my hope that we will remember what the name actually means.

A Commonwealth, simply put, is a political community organized on the concept of promoting the common good. It is not organized based on ideology, narrow self-interest, or class warfare. It is organized to develop and promote – in a balanced way – the social, political, and economic ‘common’ wealth of our society. If we look at what is happening in Washington, Mr. Speaker, most of us would agree that we are at risk of losing our balance. We cannot let that happen in Virginia.

Mr. Speaker, I believe, and I hope many of us will agree, that to be a true Commonwealth, we should work to create jobs and promote economic opportunity for the broadest cross-section of the public as possible. That is what the Governor referred to in his inaugural speech, labeling Virginia as a ‘Commonwealth of Opportunity’.

Fortunately, our nation’s economy is finally showing signs of recovery. But that does not mean that our work is done. While we need to support, recognize and celebrate our many businesses which create jobs by investing, we must remember that what we do here is key to their continued success. We must remember that we help set the stage for economic activity. Our public sector builds and maintains the infrastructure – the roads, the rail, the schools, the public amenities – that businesses consider as they decide whether to expand or even come to Virginia. And our government creates jobs in the form of teachers, firefighters, and police to support that infrastructure.

Mr. Speaker, we can have the lowest tax burden in the country, but businesses will not invest or expand unless they can get their goods to market. And we can have the fewest regulations in the country, but businesses will not invest OR expand unless they have a quality labor force and know that our educational system will continue to provide the workers of the 21st century. Make no mistake — with the decisions we make in this chamber, we all become ‘job creators’ in the truest sense of the word.

Mr. Speaker, to be a true Commonwealth, we will need to invest in educating our children and our citizens, whether it be through Pre-K, K-12, or higher education. It is very difficult to out-compete the Chinese in traditional manufacturing these days – their wages are simply too low. But we can out-compete them in terms of our mindpower, and America has shown its strength in doing that over the years. The key to maintaining our critical edge in that area is education, and we neglect it at our peril. It is for that reason that those of us on this side of the aisle will be fighting hard to expand funding for education at all levels, and we hope that our friends on the other side of the aisle will join us in that effort.

Mr. Speaker, we also cannot have a Commonwealth without being fiscally responsible, honoring our promises, and sharing our challenges.

That is why those of us on this side of the aisle are committed to restoring the VRS to full solvency and to maintaining a balanced approach in our budgeting process.

We hope our friends on the other side of the aisle will join us in these efforts.

Mr. Speaker, building a Commonwealth also requires focusing on the future – embracing the innovation and the science that will help us compete in the 21st century. That is why many of us on this side of the aisle will continue to support our scientific research and our institutions of higher learning. Historically, the United States has educated more students, educated them better, and utilized our research capabilities and technological innovation to drive economic growth. Supporting scientific inquiry and scientific results has never been uniquely democratic nor republican, and we hope to keep it that way.

And, finally, Mr. Speaker, building a Commonwealth means protecting those most in need. Whether they are citizens who seek nursing home care at reasonable costs, or workers who are thrown out of work through no fault of their own, we have an obligation to assist those in need. That does not mean that government must always provide the service, but it does mean that government needs to catalyze the effort.

During this session, our side of the aisle will serve the role of the ‘loyal opposition’, to tell, as Paul Harvey used to say, ‘the rest of the story’. We will probe, prod, engage, and embrace, as Jefferson said, ‘the noblest purposes of debate.’ We will do this not out of a desire to embarrass, humiliate, or surprise, but out of a search for the truth that leads to good public policy. So, let us debate, raise critical questions, find common ground where it is present, and advance the progress of our citizens.

Mr. Speaker, some people say that America’s best days are behind it. They decry a lack of civility and are pessimistic about our courage to change. And while we have had our moments of incivility in this chamber, I remain, as too should all members of this chamber, genuinely optimistic about our ability to work together and bring results – oriented change in a balanced fashion – so that we may build a genuine Commonwealth of Virginia.”

On Becoming Minority Leader

December 1, 2011 by David Toscano

On November 19, 2011, I was selected to serve as the House Democratic Leader by my colleagues at our retreat in Richmond. This is a great honor for me personally, a wonderful opportunity for our region, and a tremendous challenge. In the aftermath of redistricting and the fall elections, Democrats hold fewer seats in the House of Delegates than any time in recent memory. It will take a concerted and sustained effort to retake the majority in the House.

As the Democratic Leader, I am responsible for coordinating floor debates during session, developing strategy for the caucus, providing liaison with the media and other citizen groups on behalf of House Democrats, identifying future candidates for office, and raising money for democratic campaigns.

In being elected to this position, I am continually reminded of the reasons why I entered public service, and of the values that our community holds dear. In my new role, I will emphasize the following:

Our Commonwealth should focus on economic opportunity, jobs, and support for the middle class. For me, that means maintaining funding to employ people in education, public safety, and transportation, while providing investments that encourage businesses to expand and a tax climate that is fair and raises revenue sufficient to support the services our constituents hold dear. It means investing in K-12 education and higher education, so we can educate the next generation of Virginians in ways that they can compete with an increasingly global economy.

Our Commonwealth should be fiscally responsible, honor its promises, and share fiscal challenges. This means restoring the Virginia Retirement System to full solvency.

Our Commonwealth should be one of open government and open minds. The budget should be transparent and we should embrace government reform where it works and not on the basis of some vague ideological position.

Our Commonwealth should embrace innovation and support science. If we are to maintain our competitive edge, we will need to encourage more innovation and research funding, and we should respect scientists when they conclude, based on rigorous inquiry, that climate change is a function of human behavior and that evolution is clearly established and should be taught in the schools.

Our Commonwealth is diverse, and we should celebrate this fact and build on its strengths.

As a Commonwealth, we should protect those most in need, whether they are citizens who seek nursing home care at reasonable costs, or our children who, without our help, might otherwise go to bed hungry.

Our Commonwealth should support Main Street, not Wall Street. Income inequality is real and growing, and we need to place greater focus on local and regional economies that support the small businesses that are the backbone of our communities.

As the Democratic Leader in the House, I will work with my colleagues to advance this vision, and will continue to reach out to people like you for advice and counsel along the way. And I will continue to represent the 57th district and this region to the best of my ability.

As always, I appreciate your support and welcome your input.

Toscano Elected New House Minority Leader

November 19, 2011 by David Toscano

GLEN ALLEN, VA — Delegate David J. Toscano was unanimously elected new House Democratic Caucus Minority Leader by his Democratic peers in today’s Organizational Meeting held at the Wyndam Crossings in Glen Allen, Virginia.

“It has been an honor serving the Charlottesville-Albemarle community in the General Assembly for the last six years ” said Delegate Toscano. “As House Minority Leader, I look forward to continuing the work we have begun by building an effective House Caucus team that projects a positive vision for the Commonwealth and works to implement that vision for the benefit of her citizens over the next several years.”

Toscano was overwhelmingly re-elected to serve a fourth term to represent Virginia’s 57^th district in the House of Delegates earlier this month. He was first elected to represent the 57^th district in 2005, upon the retirement of former Delegate Mitch Van Yahres. Toscano previously served for twelve years on Charlottesville City Council (1990-2002), including one term as mayor (1992-1994). Toscano and his wife, Nancy Tramontin, and their son Matthew reside in the City of Charlottesville.

Toscano officially took the reins as the new Minority Leader following the unanimous vote today. He replaces former House Minority Leader, Delegate Ward Armstrong, who lost his re-election bid to the House of Delegates this year.

The Politicization of Disaster Relief

September 9, 2011 by David Toscano

One of the reasons I entered politics was to help people in difficult circumstances. Of all the times that we should marshal the resources of our communities and government, it should be during disasters. Americans’ history of doing just that is now threatened by some conservative members of the U.S. Congress, including Virginia’s own Eric Cantor (R-7th). Cantor, and his like-minded colleagues, want to make federal disaster aid contingent upon the enactment of cuts to other areas of the federal budget. This is unprecedented and inconsistent with how Americans have generally addressed disaster relief.

In Cantor’s case, it is also classic hypocrisy.

In August 2004, after Tropical Storm Gaston slammed into Central Virginia, Cantor sought the immediate assistance of the federal government in making more than $20 million in disaster aid available to his constituents. At that time, he also voted against an amendment to the supplemental bill for disaster aid that would have offset any increases in relief with budget cuts. Now, in a complete reversal, he has argued that aid to Joplin, Missouri (devastated by a tornado in May 2011), assistance to Louisa County, Virginia (in the aftermath of the earthquake), and financial help to central and eastern Virginia (attempting to clean up in the aftermath of Irene), should not occur without comparable cuts in other federal government spending.

I hope that we will not abandon a time-honored principle that the federal government should run temporary deficits to address the immediate need brought on by natural disasters, and to repay those obligations, either by spending cuts or tax increases, over a longer period of time. While Governor McDonnell has emphasized meeting the immediate need of Virginians in this post-disaster period, he has not been directly critical of Cantor’s statements in this area. I trust that our Governor, and my colleagues in the Virginia House and Senate will join together in asserting that some measure of disaster relief is a “core service of government” that should not be held hostage to political ideology.

Time to Change the Frame

August 8, 2011 by David Toscano

August 8, 2011

Watching the recent debt ceiling debate in Washington was discouraging, not just because of the vitriol pervasive in the exchanges, but the nature of the discussion itself. We have now come to the point in this country where our focus is not on how we can rebuild our economy and create jobs in a fiscally responsible manner, but on how quickly we can defund proven programs that the American people support without asking all portions of our society, particularly the wealthy, to share the pain in putting our financial house in order.

Our national political debate has shifted away from a policy discussion about jobs, investments, and economic recovery to cuts and deficit reduction. It is time to change the debate.

Remember how we got here. When Bill Clinton left office, we had a budgetary surplus in this country. After eight years of President George W. Bush, with his legacy of massive tax cuts for the wealthy, a new prescription drug benefit that was never properly funded, two wars paid for by massive borrowing, and an economy heading into a recession deeper than anything experienced since the Great Depression, this country had a budget deficit of $407 billion and a debt of $10.6 trillion.

To think we could be pulled out of this ditch without a massive change in direction was fanciful. The stimulus program (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, ARRA) brought some measure of relief, especially to states like our own, but the economy still lags. Now, the recent actions of Congress, and worse yet, some proposals yet to be realized, run the risk of further depressing job growth at a time when we need it more than ever. For example, Republicans in the House of Representatives are now proposing to dramatically cut transportation funding. All that will mean is that thousands of well-paid jobs will be lost and our infrastructure further ignored. That will be the consequence of a cuts-only approach to our budgetary challenges.

What does this mean for Virginia? Our governor recently praised this year’s so-called state budgetary “surplus,” but failed to acknowledge that we could not be in the black this year without our receipt of ARRA monies from the federal government (a program he decried), cuts to education and the social safety net, and “borrowing” from our state retirement plan (VRS). Because our state’s economy is so dependent on federal spending, we will likely lose jobs and revenues because of the debt ceiling deal, thereby putting greater pressure on our budget.

Even before the federal deal, a report from the independent think tank, The Commonwealth Institute, projected a budget shortfall for Virginia in the next budget biennium approaching $800 million. And a recent study by George Mason University documents the Commonwealth’s inadequate investment in our transportation network, a dynamic which depresses job growth and hurts our competitiveness.

Unless we change the debate and begin discussing ways to close budget gaps without solely resorting to further cuts, the Commonwealth could look very different in five years than it does at present.

What could we do to enhance revenue in Virginia? If we reformed our tax structure to reduce the rate to 5.6% for those who make less than $75,000 a year and increase to 6.85% the rate for those who earn over $400,000, we could raise an additional $300 million in 2013*.

And even if one is skittish about reforming the income tax, what about closing some tax preferences for some of Virginia’s largest industries? If we were to eliminate special tax preference for the coal industry, which costs Virginians $94 million per year**, we could reduce the tax rate for all Virginia corporations by one-half percent, providing them all with monies they could reinvest in factories and jobs, while creating additional tax revenues of approximately $26 million per year to help fund schools and public safety.

Most Virginians recognize the way to address budgetary challenges is through a balanced approach. They recognize the need to further invest in education and transportation to create jobs and a high performing workforce. They realize that helping those most in need, whether they are the elderly in nursing homes or children with inadequate access to health care, are central to what it means to be a Commonwealth. And they believe that everyone should share in the gains of economic growth and the restraint necessitated by fiscal discipline.

In this country and in our Commonwealth, we are at risk of losing our balance. The only way to restore it is to change the nature of the debate.

Sincerely,

David

Reminder: The City Democratic Firehouse Primary for City Council and Clerk of Court is Saturday, August 20, 2011. This is likely to be THE ELECTION for City Council, so I hope we will have a big turnout. If you want your voice heard, vote between 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. at Burley Middle School.

* This proposal was made in HB 2588 a 2009 bill patroned by Delegate David Englin and which I co-patroned. The bill was tabled in the House Finance Committee.

** This represents $44.1 million of credits claimed under the Coalfield Employment Enhancement Tax Credit, and an estimated $50 million claimed under the Virginia Coal Employment and Production Incentive Tax credit, as estimated by the Virginia Division of Legislative Services. The exact amount for the latter is not released by the Department of Taxation because three or fewer companies actually claim the credit.