VCC Summer-Fall 2021

V irginia C apitol C onnections , S ummer /F all 2021 9 Investing in Virginians By GLENN A. YOUNGKIN I’m running for governor to make Virginia the best place in America to live, work, and raise a family. The McAuliffe- Northam regime has had their chance and failed to deliver. They’ve had eight years to make your lives better, but they live by the philosophy that government should decide all things, which businesses will win and which ones will lose, especially penalizing small businesses and more rural parts of this great Commonwealth. They tell us what’s best for our kids in schools, giving parents no voice, and no choice. And they think they know best how to keep us safe, by underfunding law enforcement and our mental health system. They govern by the belief that they know best how to spendVirginians’ money, these tax dollars. So I’m offering my priorities for investing in all Virginians by using the surplus and the American Rescue Plan funds to provide Virginians tax relief, reinvigorate our job machine, reestablish excellence and empower parents in Virginia’s classrooms, and rescue public safety and our mental health system. Between the state surplus created through excess taxation and the American Rescue Plan, the Commonwealth has $5.8 billion dollars to invest in all Virginians. I’d like to see a meaningful amount of these dollars go directly into the pockets of Virginians. Under Democratic rule, the general fund revenues, which are taxes and fees, have increased at two times the rate of GDP growth. The state government keeps grabbing more of the pie from individual taxpayers and families. Virginians have suffered through nearly a year and a half of COVID surviving job layoffs, business shutdowns, hits to incomes and savings, and we can’t begin to forget the tragedy of the many lives that have been lost. It’s time Virginians catch a break. Under my plan, Virginians will actually get one, in the form of $1.5 billion dollars in tax relief. Second, we must reinvigorate the job machine and the economy. My vision for Virginia is one day, we will lead the nation in job creation, because taxes are low and regulations are reasonable, because small business can access capital, can hire who they need to hire, and expand, because every graduate is either college ready or career ready with the skill that will put them on the pathway to a more prosperous future. To reinvigorate our job machine, we will take several important steps. First, we need to protect employees and small businesses from the cataclysmic four-fold payroll tax increase from $90 to $360 per employee that is coming. This needs to be stopped immediately by fully funding the deficit of theVirginia Unemployment Insurance Fund, otherwise it will be disastrous to all small businesses and jobs. Second, we need to provide a tax holiday for small businesses with less than 50 employees. We have to stop piling up more taxes on the job machine, on Virginia’s small businesses, and their employees. We must bridge the digital divide now, in real time, not government time, and bring the benefits of broadband to rural Virginia. By investing in broadband, cybersecurity protection, job-creating initiatives like innovation ecosystems and sights to bring back manufacturing, along with critical environmental projects, we are investing in jobs, opportunities, and growth for all Virginians. My third priority, establishing educational excellence and empowering parents. The best means to economic development in Virginia is an educated child. I have a vision where once again we lead the nation in classroom performance, where we set high standards, provide strong curriculum, invest in facilities and teaching so all children, children of every background, can learn and succeed. I believe when you give parents choice, you give children a chance. Now is the time to empower parents to make choices for their children, by creating 20 new innovation schools in failing school districts. Also, we will provide $500 refunds per public school student to families to invest in their childrens’ educational recovery. They decide: More tutoring? Mental health counseling?What does my child need to help make up for last year’s terrible outcomes? There has been so much learning loss because our children spent a year trapped at home. We asked too much of teachers. Finally my fourth priority, rescuing public safety and our mental health system. We are all, all Virginians are immensely concerned with crime-ridden communities and the hard left’s agenda to defund the police. We must fund the police. We must stop the resignations and early retirements, and train and equip law enforcement to be the best in America.We will provide a $5,000 retention bonus for officers over the next 3 years, retaining our law enforcement heroes. Also, let’s keep all first responders safe, with significant investments in critical equipment. Law enforcement and other first responders have the hardest job in Virginia. They run towards danger, they encounter uncertainty in crisis, they have to make life and death decisions - snap decisions. These heroic Virginians deserve our support by preserving qualified immunity, through better pay and better equipment, so they can do their jobs with the absolute professionalism so they can ensure the safest communities in America. My vision is a Virginia with safe neighborhoods, where our children can play without worry, where the elderly can take a walk without fear, with police partnering with communities to patrol and keep everyone safe. These are my investment priorities. This is a moment for transformational investment. This 5.8 billion dollar plan includes over $2 billion that goes directly to Virginians in the form of tax relief and educational recovery assistance. It invests $2.6 billion to reinvigorate our job machine, $1.2 billion to reestablish excellence in education, and $500 million to rescue public safety and our mental health system. Make no mistake, with the Youngkin Administration, this is the Virginia that you can expect. When I’m your Governor, we will get things done. This edition includes contact information for candidates for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and the House of Delegates. The wide distribution among elected officials and others interested in Virginia politics makes this the best place to include your copy. Contact VCC@CapitolSquare.com for more information. Order copies online: wordsprint.com/vcc- publication-orders.html 1108 East Main Street Suite 1200 • Richmond, VA 23219 804.643.5554 • www.vccqm.com Virginia’s Directory of Candidates for Public Office 2021 V REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR