Interview with John Van Hoy Candidate 28th Senate District

As we continue our coverage of the 28th Senate District contest for the Republican Nomination we now present our interview with candidate John Van Hoy.  John is a former Chairman of the Stafford Republican Committee.  He served in that role for 12 years from 1989 to 2002.   John has also served on a number of community boards both local and state level.   The boards he has served on include, but not limited to: Stafford County Utility Commission, State Water Commission, and the University of Mary Washington Board of Visitors.

 In addition to his community service John also serves on a number of business and trade association boards.  Professionally he is a geologist and serves in executive positions with a number of private enterprises.  John Van Hoy’s campaign website can be found at www.vanhoy4senate.com

 1. What can you tell Virginia Virtucon readers about John Van Hoy that we can not find in your bio posted on your website ? (i.e. hobbies, favorite television show, favorite book, childhood memories, etc.)

In third grade, my friends and I would play on Sunken Road, on the stone walls, and I became fascinated with the Civil War.  My interest for the history of the Stafford/Fredericksburg and Northern Neck area has remained.

My favorite movies are Amadeus and It’s a Wonderful Life. My favorite TV shows are comedies; I really like “The Simpson’s” and “Seinfeld.”

 Some of my memories include watching Neil Armstrong step on the moon, watching the JFK funeral, and sitting in elementary school watching the Apollo 13 return to earth.
   

2. The current Senator representing the 28th district is not held in particular high regard with conservatives throughout the state.  Many conservative activist and voters of the 28th district are excited to have the opportunity to fill the seat with a consistent conservative.  You were the Stafford GOP chairman for a several years that overlapped his service in the State Senate.  As party chair what were your thoughts of how the 28th district was represented and how will you use conservative principles to lead in the State Senate?

Senator Chichester was a member of the Stafford Republican Committee; he served as my senator for the 12 years I was chair.

In the years prior to the GOP gaining majority and his election to finance chair,  John expressed conservative principles and worked on the platform of less government and lower taxes.  After John was elected to the senate finance chair and the GOP gained the majority,  he seemed to have become the more involved as a state leader and less as the senator for the 28th.

We came to see the role of government very differently, even to which perspective was more important.

It is my opinion we should always start with what our citizens and businesses can afford, rather than what the leadership thinks government needs and how to pay for it.

As a Reagan conservative I will use this foundation of less government and the goal of keeping as much of the citizens’ hard earned money in their family’s hands when I review new legislation. When a request to spend Virginia citizen’s money is put forth, the yard stick to measure against will be the question, is this a proper role of the Virginia government or just a good idea better implemented by the private sector.

Our budget has grown far too large by funding items better funded by the private sector and not funding the more important needs such as new roads for improved traffic movement.

3. Transportation issues have dominated Virginia politics for many years.  As pointed out in the question above there was bond referendum in Stafford County in 2006 which would have been dedicated to transportation.  The bond was voted down by the voters.  In your opinion what is the best way to attack the transportation issues facing the state?  Do all of the answers need to come from the state or should we expect local communities bearing more responsibility?

Improved movement of traffic on our roadways is one of the most important challenges facing the Virginia legislature today.

Currently the emphasis is on increased funding only and not on what new traffic solutions are needed and their cost. Governor Baliles, in 1986, proved with the then largest tax increase in Virginia history, that simply increasing funding does not result in solutions.

Just as in our family budget, we have to define the needs, agree on the solutions, detail the cost of the solutions, and then and only then,  increase the funding to build the solutions.

In order to address the traffic problems I suggest breaking the discussion into two general areas.

a) Address and define the current traffic congestion problems.

Currently the most congested roads are used for commercial traffic and thru-ways to our residential centers.  We need to develop limited access parkways from the inter-states to our residential centers.  If local roads like 610 are developed with access lanes and a limited access thru-ways, both commercial and commuter interests are served.  An attempt was made to achieve this in the Route 17 England Run commercial area in the late 80s.  That attempt did not succeed.  Had it been put in place, the current back ups on 17 might not exist. 

Re I-95, approximately 65% of Stafford county residents commute to jobs in Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia.   In April 30th  Washington Post, Fairfax County is projected to have more jobs than people in coming decades.  Job growth and job creation over time close to residential areas, in addition to telecommuting and use of new technologies that allow for work at home or other distance work environments, are the only real solutions to addressing congestion on 95.  State representatives have more ability and more scope, working with localities, to address relocation of federal and private sector workforce. 

b) Use proactive methods to avoid the same traffic problems re-occurring in roads not currently stressed.

When new residential areas are approved by the county supervisors, the connection to the parkway system should be planned during the re-zoning process.  The process should involve all interested parties; all stakeholders, public and private, in  planning.   The knowledge base of the private sector should be recognized and utilized in this process.

Local authority in road decision making is both a boon and a bane.  Because interconnectivity was a problem when counties maintained the roads decades ago, and because maintenance of roads differed from county to county, the state took over the road system.   The road system significantly improved. 

Currently local authority in roads exists in the use of the comprehensive plan and in the rezoning process.  These are powerful tools of local boards of supervisors, if those tools are used.   The state has the obligation to work with counties and should respect county authorities in the local land use process (county elected officials are the closest in terms of represented voters to their constituents) but also needs to ensure that connectivity of roads and that functionality and road maintenance serve the public good. 

4. Staying with Transportation for another question.  Many areas of the 28th district are some of the fastest growing areas of Virginia and even fastest growing areas of the entire country.  What are your proposals for improving the transportation infrastructure the area?  Do you support HOV lane extensions into the Rappahannock area from Northern Virginia on I-95?  Do view HOT lanes as an adequate improvement to the I-95/I-395 corridor to provide a long-term fix to traffic congestion along the route? What about VRE – what improvements do you see being necessary to improve service on VRE?

HOV lane extensions are a practical tool; the current HOV lanes have made a significant difference, providing both incentives for carpooling which helps congestion, and easier access for those who want to manage their commutes to support carpooling.  HOV lanes should go at least to Massaponax; this should help to ease the I-95 backup at Quantico where the HOV ends and merges into I-95.

HOT lanes are a concern as a long term fix because they require tolls and may not be an equitable solution; i.e., do HOT lanes represent a fair approach for all commuters, all of whose taxes pay for the roadway and maintenance?  The HOT lane contract should have a sunset clause.  In twenty years, HOT lanes should revert back to the state. 

VRE, as is all light rail, a good idea, but it is a good idea that should be viewed in the context of all transportation mechanisms.   To move a specific amount of people on 95 may cost $100 million dollars over ten years in terms of publicly funded lane expansion , whereas moving the same amount of people on VRE over ten years may cost $10 million in public funding.   If VRE is to be an effective measure against congestion on I-95, ticket prices need to be kept within an affordable range so the VRE is a realistic and reliable solution for commuters.

5. Taxes are always a hot issue for conservative voters.  During the Warner administration taxes were increased during a time that the state was running a surplus in the name of transportation improvement.  During the most recent legislative session a new transportation package was passed that many view as a significant tax increase.  Do you support the idea of raising taxes when the state is running a surplus?  How would you propose providing services that voters demand without raising taxes?  Are there any times you would see the need to raise taxes and if so what types of taxes would you target?  Do you propose reduction or elimination of any taxes?

I do NOT support the idea of raising taxes when the state is running a surplus.  I also do not support the idea of raising taxes when the state is not running a surplus.  I have signed a no new tax pledge, in which I believe and which I support whole-heartedly.  We are taxed too heavily every where we turn.   Taxes are never lowered; historically, when in a recession, and when there is a shortfall, the government’s first solution is to look for more tax dollars from the citizens who are equally if not more impacted by the recession.  With a surplus, those monies should be returned to citizens, rather than spent in new arenas chosen by elected officials.

If taxes are to be cut, the current decision process is difficult.   All citizens should have access to full budget detail online for all state agencies.   Currently there is only an executive summary which does not show the range of expenditures.   State agencies are bound by law to track their expenses in detail but that detail is not easily accessible by the average citizen.  The internet has changed public access and now we have the opportunity to make the budget details of government more accessible for review by every taxpayer than ever before.  We should do this and let the public discussion begin.

6. During the most recent legislative session the General Assembly passed legislation that proposed some modest mandates on restaurants with regards to smoking within the establishments.  When the Governor got his hands on the bill he changed it completely to include a complete ban of smoking in all restaurants throughout the Commonwealth.  The General Assembly mustered enough votes to override the Governor’s changes.  This has obviously set up a battle in the coming years to have legislation to ban smoking.  Do you support smoking bans for all restaurants, bars and other facilities? 

I do not support a smoking ban.  This should be left to the free enterprise system and the owners of restaurants who are focused on serving their customers.    Many of the franchise stores have banned smoking.   Other enterprises have not.   Free enterprise will address the will of its customer base much more quickly than will government.  If sales are non-existent at a location  that allows smoking, the owner will react to the customer base and will change the product to serve its constituency.  The marketplace will address the needs of the consumer more quickly and fairly than will government. 

7. On a campaign flyer you list Immigration as an important issue.  Immigration has been a hot topic throughout the state and country over the last several years.  Many view illegal immigration as a national issue and one the federal government must work to resolve.  What do you propose to limit the burden of illegal immigration on voters in the Commonwealth?

Illegal immigration is a problem we should be able to reduce dramatically in the short term without burdening our small business people.  Our small businesses should not be expected to be the equivalent of the Federal INS service.

Several options are available to address this problem. Businesses that pay cash “under the table” in order to hire illegal immigrants should be prosecuted as this is a demonstrated and willful violation of the law.

However, the state can compare the social security numbers of W2s when the state report is sent to the state department of taxation at the conclusion of the year. We can then compare this database to the federal system for false numbers or illegal persons.   We can also develop a website for employers to simply log in the social security numbers for all newly hired employees for the state to investigate if a number seems suspicious.

8. Governor Kaine does not favor the death penalty.  He vetoed bills that would have imposed the death penalty on murderers of trial witnesses and judges.  Many members of law enforcement saw these bills as opportunities to help fight increasing gang violence.  The General Assembly has since voted to override the Governor’s vetoes.   Do you agree with the General Assembly or the Governor on the issue of the death penalty?  Would you have any proposals to change any aspects of the death penalty and how it is imposed and carried out in the Commonwealth of Virginia?

I support the death penalty as it currently stands. 

9. Finally, thank you for your time.  Please share with the readers of the Virginia Virtucon any additional thoughts you may consider important issues for the voters of the 28th district that we have not covered.

The most important natural resources in the 28th are our waterways:  the Bay, the Rappahannock, the Potomac and their tributaries.   The environmental protection of these waterways must be addressed.     Oystermen, crabbers, fishermen, sportsmen, all those who use these waterways—those who count on these waterways for their livelihood and who represent a cornerstone both in our local quality of life in tradition and in our local marketplaces—must be our highest concern.   We must be careful to not over-regulate to provide legislation that is overly restrictive.  We need a balanced approach that protects resources without unintended consequences. 

Issues include sediment loading from development, non-point source pollution and point source pollution and hydrocarbon run off and effective use of the tributary strategy.   I have been an active member of the Board of Directors of the Friends of the Rappahannock for twelve years; I served on the State Water Commission, a body composed of state senators and delegates with two gubernatorial appointments—I was one of two appointees by Gov. George Allen.  I understand both the issues and the governmental mechanisms to address those issues; regulation impacts private enterprise and I also understand that we need to be always cognizant of the impact of regulation on private enterprise.  I served nine years on the Stafford Utility Commission.  I have a degree in geology with an emphasis in hydro-dynamics. 

We need to succeed in protecting our natural resources; we need effective solutions.

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Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

• Why I still support John Van Hoy (and why you should, too)
• Is Chichester trying to steer Republicans away from John Van Hoy?