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By DONALD DEL ROSSO
Arundel Newspapers Staff Writer
For Gov. Gerald L. Baliles, the economic future of the commonwealth is now.
Meeting Virginia’s growth needs over the “long haul” will require the state to move quickly to improve its transportation and education systems, Gov. Baliles told ArCom newspaper editors in an hour-long interview last Wednesday.
“I think that if we do that ... people can write the history books 10, 15, 20 years from now and say those people at that point in history of the state decided to take charge of their own destiny. I really think we have that opportunity.”
Based in Herndon, the communications company owns The Loudoun Times-Mirror, The Fauquier Democrat, The Reston Times, The Herndon Times, The Clarke Courier and The Rappahannock News.
The interview covered a variety of subjects, including the environment, the Center for Innovative Technology, the challenge of being governor, the one-term governorship, the Baliles legacy, and the governor’s highly publicized disagreements with Lt. Gov. L. Douglas Wilder about the $10.2 billion estimate for road needs and contact visits for prisoners.
But the focus of last week’s interview was on the special General Assembly session on the governor’s massive highway construction program. The special session — the first since 1981 — will begin at noon on Sept. 15.
A superior road system is central to Virginia’s continued development, Gov. Baliles told the sixmember editorial board.
“Just as transportation has been a part of our past, it’s fundamental to our future. It is absolutely critical that we be able to move people and products efficiently 'and quickly. And if we can’t do that then we’re going to lose out to other states and other countries.”
He added: “We’re very much involved in the race for the future, and I propose that we win it.”
Since the Commission on Transportation in the 21st Century released its findings and recommendations on July 28, the controversial package of tax increases has been the topic of heated debate across Virginia.
For nearly six weeks, highway officials, Senate and House committees and lawmakers have held hearings, briefings and informational meetings to explain the blue-ribbon commission’s report.
The proposals, which call for substantial increases in sales, gasoline, vehicle titling taxes and limited use of “pledge” bonds, have generated criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike.
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