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Hanger seeks fourth term for 24th district
BY JAMES JACENICH • STAFF WRITER
 | | Emmett Hanger Jr. |
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MONTEREY - Sen. Emmett Hanger of Virginia's 24th district is seeking a fourth term in office this election.
"I am a responsible conservative and I have sought out leadership opportunities in a large range of policy issues to represent my area more effectively," said Hanger. "Because of my positioning (on various committees) I can represent the rural areas better," he said in a May interview with The Recorder.
"I enjoy the work, I'm a hard worker, I'm actively engaged in quality of life issues, working for efficient government that is limited but enhances our quality of life," he said.
Hanger said a voter is a voter, no matter what county, town or city they live in.
"I think in terms of one voter," he said. "One voter in Highland has the same clout as one voter in Rockingham or Augusta. It's one voter at a time. I spend a significant amount of time on Highland due to the uniqueness of issues back here. Part of my focus in Richmond is land conservation and farm conservation. Most people want stimulus to the economy but also want to preserve a way of life as well. That is compatible with what I am trying to do: to help farmers remain farmers."
Tax reform
Hanger said he is for reasonable and fair taxes. "People are upset with me for chairing tax reform (in 2004)," he said. "Tax reform was a good thing, particularly for western Virginia. When we increased the sales tax by half a penny that increased revenue." He also said raising the sales tax helped keep real-estate taxes down.
"It was a minor tax adjustment," he added. "$500 million of the $700 million was returned to local government. The rest went to state colleges to fund tuition, some went into conservation, and some went to programs to mitigate nonpoint source discharge.
"We took 2 cents off food at the same time we added half a penny to durable goods," he continued. "People actually got a tax cut based on that one item.
"Highland County does not have a land-use taxation program," said Hanger. "If the land was valued differently some would pay less in real estate taxes. But the overall rate would have to go up to raise enough money (to finance local government)."
Growth will not solve Highland's tax problem, he said.
"Augusta County has a lot of growth, but the tax rate is 58 cents and property values are even higher than in Highland County," he said. "The cities are fiscally stressed. On average, people in the cities pay $1 per $100 real-estate value. What we are finding is that property values are going up in the cities, too."
Highland County's property tax rate is 38 cents per $100 appraised value.
Funding education Hanger sponsored a bill to link Highland's composite index for school funding to Augusta's composite index. "This year Highland County is getting $500,000 more than it would if that law didn't pass," said Hanger. "That's about $200 for every man, woman and child in the county.
"The ultimate impact was a tax reduction for Highland County, not a tax increase," he said. "Roughly a million dollars flowed into the county as a result of tax reform and the change in the composite index. My whole area is a net receiver of taxes. We receive more than we pay in. We don't produce the major dollars the metropolitan areas produce.
"The composite index, overall, tends to work very well except in limited circumstances where you have a lot of growth," Hanger added. "Highland is a beneficiary now. The localities that really want to change it are Alexandria, Fairfax, they are maxed out paying 80 cents on the dollar (for education)."
Wind energy
On potential wind turbine development in Highland County, Hanger said, "At the state level there is a pull and tug from the environmental community, some opposed, some for wind. It depends on where you are located.
"I have been involved in two aspects. One is a general study of the issue. I enabled a study to go forward (carried legislation) several years ago. I was also asked by the Highland County Board of Supervisors to carry legislation that would give assurances of revenue if they were built. It helps guarantee it, if in fact ... it came to fruition. There would be a known revenue stream. This gives the county the ability to have a steady revenue stream from the utility."
Hanger supports wind energy, but supports localities deciding land-use issues for themselves more. "I have not been asked to engage in the debate (over wind turbine placement) and I have not tried to influence the debate," he said. "That is a decision that has to be made locally by the people that are impacted.
"I am not shy about controversial issues," said Hanger. "I support wind energy, we should use it as appropriate, but people in each locality have to decide what is appropriate to that locality. The federal government shouldn't mandate. Localities should be autonomous.
"It seems the vote (on wind turbines) is evenly divided here," he added. "That's still my impression. At times there seems to be more opposition than support. I don't have an agenda on it, so I don't think it would swing the vote (for me) one way or another. Even those who have said to me they are opposed to it want the issue settled one way or the other - either do it or don't do it and be done with the debate. I was here during the Maple Festival and that is what I heard more often than not.
"The general tendency in the rest of the district is to support wind energy unless it is in your area," he said.
Hanger does support a broad energy policy, such as that introduced by Sen. Frank Wagner, the Virginia Energy Plan, which passed the legislature last year. Hanger also sponsored a bill that would require the Department of Agriculture to provide an incentive program for alternative fuels such as bio-diesel made from switch grass.
"Over the last three years in our senate Republican caucus we have attempted to come up with a fairly broad energy policy," said Hanger. "Sen. Frank Wagner, a good friend, has taken the lead. There are a number of initiatives that would take us in different directions and try to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels."
Local government
"If local governing body asks me to do something, and I don't philosophically disagree with it, I'll try to do it," Hanger said. "If the local body wanted to increase efficiencies in the operation of the school, I would entertain that. If school population continues to decline, it will become an issue (of diseconomy of scale).
"Sometimes circumstances change, people need to take stock of that," he said. "Things have changed over the last couple of years. Taxes will never be low enough, but they are the price we pay for an infrastructure and orderly government. On the other hand, there never seems to be enough money to meet all the needs everybody has. There is never enough money."
Hanger said community service is one of the strengths of the people of Highland County. Volunteer organizations raise money for programs that would otherwise have to be paid for by taxes and clubs create a good environment for families. He acquired a connection with people in Highland County through his interactions at the district level as a Ruritan member.
"I hope people coming here realize you don't just sit back and take advantage of the good deeds, but get involved," he said.
Road improvement
Hanger said he worked with the Virginia Department of Transportation to save VDOT jobs in Highland County. "We made accommodation over here there would be no personnel lost from the restructuring of VDOT," said Hanger. The proposed personnel cuts in Highland County would not have saved the state money, he said.
"A number of years ago there were people in town who wanted to do some innovative things to increase traffic to the county," he said. "We got some roads done (Williamsville and U.S. 250). We got about $11 million to do some more work on mountain highways over here. A group over here opposed it and the money was lost. There is a sensitivity to the perception of some folks over here that they like it just the way it is."
Regionally, Hanger said building new rail lines to handle trucks would be cost-prohibitive. But that doesn't mean something can't be done to ease the burden on the interstate highway system. "I am a proponent of switching as much of the freight on our roads to rail as possible. We have allocated about $85 million to help with rail upgrades to help indirectly. (We worked on providing an) improvement to a rail link between Front Royal and Manassas. It will have the impact of taking about 500,000 trailers of freight off I-81. There is also a proposal for an intermodal transfer point down in Roanoke/Montgomery County to take additional freight off the system."
Unfunded mandates
Hanger said a downturn in the economy in 2004 forced the state to transfer the cost of some programs from the state to local governments. "The state had an obligation to pay, but the local governments had to suck that up. We have that partnership with local governments. If we decide to give teachers a raise, the county picks up some of that. We are doing better now," he said.
"Most of what concerns local governments is when government skimps on fully funded items," said Hanger. "We are improving in that area. We attempt not to mandate to local governments without the funding being there. We have more trouble with the federal government passing programs along. No Child Left Behind is an example of an unfunded mandate. It costs more than what we get to do what they want done.
"It's difficult for localities to have to deal with that.
"We've made great progress," said Hanger. "The state needed to increase revenues to meet responsibilities back to local governments. Tax reform did that. If taxes have to go up $100,000 in Highland County they might have to go up $50 million in Fairfax County. The increased burden on real estate taxes is more than the adjustments we made in Richmond in 2004. It is less fair to place that burden on real estate.
"We can't keep costs from increasing sometimes, but we can make government work more efficiently so we get good value for services we require," he continued. "I have been a key leader in the state for the state to assume its responsibilities. If the state is requiring something it should pay for it. I have a proven track record."
Watershed protection, conservation
easements
"I sponsored legislation in 1999 that created the Virginia Land Conservation Incentives Act," said Hanger. "It protects farmland, protects land, and keeps taxes lower because it costs less to service farmland.
Hanger was chairman of the Chesapeake Bay commission last year. "We are also under a consent agreement. We agree to conserve so much land by 2010. In Virginia, if we go back to June 2005, we lacked 358 000 acres from meeting our conservation goal. That is something I am engaged on. It is a goal that is achievable. I am working on a purchase development rights program that will also allow us to save land."
Concern over the cost to farmers for protection of the Chesapeake Bay was one of the reasons Hanger became involved with the Chesapeake Bay commission. "That (undue burden on farmers) is an issue that I have been in the forefront on. We have been successful. We have voluntary conservation in place that has been working effectively. I have personally been responsible for increasing the flow of money to farmers through our conservation districts, to help the farmers with implementing best management practices to limit the amount of nutrients getting into the bay. We are doing a wonderful job in accomplishing that. I chaired a subcommittee several years ago that drafted a pamphlet on cleaning up the Bay. We made the argument that there should be cost sharing. Last year, I supported more funding for farmers, not just commodities. We still need additional funding for best management practices to assist the farmers, we also need efforts in place to help farmers stay farmers. I am currently looking at ways to fine tune the conservation easement program to help farmers remain as farmers."
As far as growth versus preservation, Hanger supports focused growth. "Build infrastructure and support growth in urban centers," he said. "Local governments can exercise a lot of positive control by facilitating growth in urban centers. On the other hand, there is the issue of private property rights. It's there property, not the county's business."
State economy
"Our economy is still growing at a 4.4 percent rate, but the budget we are operating under was based on projected growth of six percent," said Hanger. "A little belt tightening is in order. But unless it gets worse, we should be all right. There will be no cuts in K-12 education funding. Based on where we sit right now, the cuts won't be a major thing. It never hurts to look at services to bring more efficiencies. The choice not to fill some positions was a good one."
Hanger said money can also be pulled from other allocations if needed. "We took $500 million and put it in transportation from the general fund to fund projects; some of that money can be pulled back if necessary. We allocated about $1 billion for capital improvement; we can slow that down or convert it to bonds. The magnitude of the problem is not that great. As for the so-called rainy day fund, some suggest it shouldn't be touched, I think it should be on the table. It is officially designated $1.2 billion of taxpayer money in the fund to to stabilize projections.
Chances of winning?
"My instinct is, I am more popular now with the broad sector of voters," said Hanger in May. His victory over Republican challenger Scott Sayre set the stage for his fall campaign against Democratic candidate David Cox and Libertarian candidate Arin Sime.
"In terms of getting around the district, I feel I have a broad base of support," Hanger said this week. "The base is still there. I think in the broad cross-section of the public, people are agreeing with me, not always with specific actions, but in broad concepts. I try to represent he interests of the area as far as I can. I have purposely sought out leadership in a lot of issues important to people. I hope people appreciate that."
About the candidate
Hanger was born in Staunton Aug. 2, 1948. He graduated from Ft. Defiance High School and received a B.S. in Management and Economics and an M.B.A. from James Madison University. He is in the business of commercial real estate. He served as a Captain in the Army National Guard. He served from 1972-83. Hanger is a member of the Church of the Brethren. He was a member of the House of Delegates from 1983-92 and has been a member of the Senate since 1996.
The 24th district comprises all of Augusta, Greene, and Highland counties; parts of Albemarle, Rockbridge, and Rockingham counties; and all of Lexington, Staunton and Waynesboro.
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