Kaine Begins Session With Legacy at Stake

Governor to Outline Proposals Tonight

RICHMOND, Jan. 8 -- Midway through his term, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) begins another General Assembly session Wednesday with high job approval ratings and his party controlling the Senate. But some elected officials and others question whether Kaine can translate those advantages into a permanent legacy before he leaves office in 2010.

The stakes are higher this year for Kaine, in part because a governor's third year can define the mark he leaves on the state. This is the first time he has proposed a two-year budget, and it comes after an election in which his party not only took back the Senate but also made gains in the House.

In an interview, Kaine said he will use his third State of the Commonwealth speech Wednesday night to outline a vision for helping the poor, improving education and keeping the state's economy on track.

"I look at myself as a very pragmatic person with a big heart," said Kaine, who took a year off from law school to be a missionary in Honduras. "I have a lot of care and concern for my fellow Virginians. I want to try to make sure the quality of life here is good, not just for some but for everybody."

As the General Assembly convenes Wednesday for 60 days, Kaine will fight for his proposed $78 billion, 2009-10 budget, which includes additional money to conserve land, expand access to pre-kindergarten for poor children, improve foster care and launch a government program that will partner with small businesses to offer health insurance to low-income employees.

Kaine will push a legislative agenda that includes restricting smoking in restaurants, expanding identity theft protection and closing a loophole that allows unlicensed dealers at gun shows to sell firearms without conducting background checks.

Kaine faces considerable challenges, mainly because a slumping housing market has slowed revenue. The governor has proposed a plan with potential political risks that would transfer $261 million in reserves and an additional $180 million from highway construction funds to help balance the budget.

Some Republicans said Kaine is so intent on building a legacy that he is threatening to saddle the state with debt when he leaves office.

"I don't fault him for things he feels passionately about, but I think he brought a budget to us that is based on a very shaky foundation," said Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R), who is considering running for governor next year.

Although Kaine said he is not thinking about his legacy, Republicans said the governor is still searching for the big legislative victory that will define his tenure.

The third year of his four-year term could prove critical to Kaine's legacy. His predecessor, Mark R. Warner (D), pushed through a $1.5 billion tax increase in his third year to close a budget shortfall and increase funding for education. The state's last two Republican governors, James S. Gilmore III and George Allen, got off to quicker starts than Kaine and Warner, all but accomplishing their major goals by the midpoint of their terms.

During his first 18 months, Kaine haggled with Republicans over finding more money to pay for transportation projects. House Republicans rejected Kaine's call for a statewide tax increase. Instead they forged a compromise with GOP senators on a plan that relied largely on regional taxing authorities in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads to raise $1 billion a year for new roads and mass transit. After initially decrying the GOP plan, Kaine eventually embraced it.