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Planning
Virginia’s future — an insider’s look
Related
commentary:
New council embraces long-range
planning
by
Hugh Keogh
For Virginia Business
July 2003
Last
December an affiliation of 16 business advocacy organizations
known as the Coalition for Virginia’s Future conducted
a critically important, if low profile, two-day event
at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. In
attendance was Gov. Mark R. Warner, his Cabinet, a broad
cross section of the legislative leadership and selected
business leaders from across the commonwealth.
The
group assembled under the banner of “Virginia’s
Strategic Vision Conference.” The event was pivotal
in that it took a vital first step in immersing our
chief policy makers and political leaders in the notion
of long-range strategic planning for Virginia —
something the state has always lacked. When the conference
ended the seeds were sown, in a compellingly bipartisan
fashion, for legislation that came to be known as the
Roadmap for Virginia’s Future.
The
coalition’s roadmap bill won unanimous approval
in both houses during the 2003 General Assembly session.
Along the way the efforts of three individuals stood
out. First was John O. “Dubby” Wynne, the
recently retired president & CEO of Landmark Communications
in Norfolk. As co-chair of the coalition, Wynne is well
connected, articulate and absolutely passionate about
Virginia’s need for a visioning process coupled
with rigorous performance measures and vastly improved
accountability in state government. The roadmap was
his brainchild, and Wynne was prepared to expend abundant
personal and political energy to get it done.
Second
was his co-chair, Heywood Fralin, a successful and respected
businessman from the Roanoke Valley. Fralin — angular,
low-key, perceptive and also well connected with perhaps
a different coterie of leadership than Wynne —
used his western Virginia demeanor and well-hewn common
sense to impress legislators with the value of strategic
thinking and its impact on Virginia’s long-term
attractiveness as a business location. The third member
of the roadmap “team” was Del. Michele McQuigg,
a Republican legislator from Prince William County.
McQuigg, serving a third term in the House of Delegates,
was essentially a backbencher who had developed a passion
for strategic thinking and government accountability
as a member of her local board of supervisors. She brought
that passion with her to Richmond and, like Wynne, served
on Gov. Warner’s Commission on Efficiency and Effectiveness.
With
the Coalition for Virginia’s Future providing a
continuing forum for discussion and polishing of the
roadmap concept, these three leaders ensured the legislation
got drafted, with McQuigg as patron. Co-patrons were
recruited from both houses and both sides of the aisle.
The Virginia Chamber of Commerce made its lobbyists
available to sign up backers and explain the theory
to numerous legislators. Occasionally,
the legislative process moves pretty swiftly when a
broad consensus emerges on an issue. That’s what
happened with the roadmap bill. A version passed unanimously
in the House with two potential sticking points: the
chairmanship and the council’s size.
Ultimately those issues were smoothed over through negotiation
and compromise. With Wynne serving as the liaison to
the governor’s office, Fralin reassuring the Republican
leadership and McQuigg, in her quiet, persistent fashion,
keeping the matter on the legislative front burner,
a deal was reached: The governor would chair the council,
appropriate for the state’s CEO. Its composition
would consist of 18 members total, with their selection
parceled out in a manner that prohibited (or at least
inhibited) control of the group by one body or party.
The bill, with an invaluable assist from Sen. Walter
Stosch (R-Henrico), emerged intact from both Houses.
This is how good policy is made.
Results
are yet to be seen, but unmistakably the Roadmap for
Virginia’s Future is being implemented following
an exemplary legislative linkup between government and
business. The council has met, its ambitious work plan
has been approved and the visioning process is underway.
Potentially this mechanism can fundamentally change
the way the state works and deliver to Virginians a
government that is more efficient, more accountable
and imbued with strategic thinking. The machinery is
in place. Only indifference will jeopardize its progress.
The
writer is the President and CEO of the Virginia Chamber
of Commerce.
Return
to Virginia Business - August 2003
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