Speaker Howell Announces $775,000 In House Spending Cuts

House Speaker Bill Howell announced that his chamber is saving the state $775,000 in cuts and savings.
According to the Washington Post:

 "The savings come from leaving a staff position vacant for nine months, maintaining the 1991-approved 2 percent pay cut in delegates' $17,640-a-year salary and continuing to require that legislative meetings outside of session be held only on certain days and weeks to save unnecessary expenditures."

When you consider that the Virginia Retirement System is billions of dollars in the red, the House savings is a drop in the bucket.  However, every little bit helps I suppose.  Americans for Prosperity’s Virginia State Director Ben Marchi today issued the following statement:

“We commend Speaker Howell and the House of Delegates for recognizing the need for continued reductions in the cost of Virginia government.  His actions demonstrate a consistent pattern of fiscal conservatism that does a great service to the taxpayers of the Commonwealth.  While Virginia families are tightening their own budgets, it is encouraging to see the House of Delegates doing the same.

“These actions track what Gov. McDonnell has done in the executive branch, leaving the Virginia Senate lagging in addressing office spending concerns.  With higher compensation and per diem allowances, the public servants in the upper chamber evidently feel that it’s more expensive to serve in the Senate than the House.”