Have your neighbors called Richmond Yet?
Good Monday!! We all had such wonderful weather last week — while the weather is cooling a bit, the sun is still shining here in Richmond. Good for happy dispositions!
While the State Budget Conferees are hard at work to settle the differences between the House and Senate's Budgets, a couple hundred of the "No Tax Increases At Any Cost" folks and "No Referendum Needed; Do Your Job" folks both spoke to the press here today. And you will hear about that on TV tonight or in the newspaper tomorrow.
That's all interesting. But not that important to your Delegate and your Senator.
What's important to them is to hear from the voters back home.
That's YOU and YOUR NEIGHBORS… the people that you see at work … the people that you see at the grocery store … the people that you see at your place of worship.
It is more important than ever that you — and your neighbors! — contact your Delegate and your Senator with one clear message: We want a budget that adequately funds the core functions of State government and that budget must be completed on time!
"On time" means by this week — the Conferees are to finish their negotiations, and the full General Assembly will take the vote to accept (or reject) their decision this week. That must happen for the General Assembly to be finished at the end of the day on Saturday, March 13th — "on time."
Only once before in our memory has this process not been completed on time — that was in 2001. Remember that? We don't want to have that experience again.
So, what are the "core functions of State government"? Most folks say Education, Health Care, Public Safety, and Transportation. If the State government program that you value is not on that list, add it. Now, the budget discussion is larger than just services for persons living with HIV/AIDS. It's about all of the core functions — of which we all seem to agree that Health Care is one.
Members and their aides have told me how important these calls are to them.
It's time to make sure your voice and the voices of your neighbors are heard — not just those of a couple of hundred folks who were in Richmond today.
Pass it on ….
If you don't know who to call, or how … go to www.VORAonline.org … and click on "Action Center".