The 2019 General Assembly Session convenes on Jan. 9 in Richmond. We had a very successful 2018 session and will look to build on that when the General Assembly convenes.

Our top priorities for 2019 are providing tax relief for working families, slowing the massive growth in health care costs, making college more affordable, and keeping students safe in schools.

Unfortunately, Democrats in the House already appear to be advancing a far-left agenda out-of-step with Virginia. They have proposed tax increases, legislation that could mandate union membership in order to get a job, and a radical proposal that will ban the use of fossil fuels.

Governor Ralph Northam has proposed a budget that will increase spending by $2.2 billion including hundreds of millions in spending long-after his term is over. Worse still, he plans to pay for this spending with $1.2 billion in higher taxes.

On the contrary, we have proposed a plan to stop Governor Ralph Northam’s middle-class tax hike and provide targeted tax relief to middle and low income Virginians, without costing the state a penny.

We are also prioritizing two dozen recommendations from the House Select Committee on School Safety. House Republicans have led the effort this year to find innovative ways to keep our children safe.

We know the cost of college continues to rise for too many families, and we are focused on legislative solutions to make college more affordable. This year we have developed a package of bills to make tuition discussions at colleges more transparent, increase the number of internships, and align our degree programs to make sure students can get good-paying jobs.

Health care costs also continue to pinch middle-class families. We are working with our colleagues in the Senate on a series of bills to make it easier and more affordable to get quality health insurance. National politicians in Washington have created a mess in health care, and we are doing everything we can to make it better in Virginia.

Legislation introduced by Delegate Hugo will allow taxpayers to itemize their state taxes regardless of how they file their federal return, increase the state standard deduction across the board, and maintain the important state and local tax (SALT) deduction as it exists today.

This plan will fully implement the federal tax cuts at the state level, protecting a middle class family that itemizes from what could be roughly a $805 tax increase or providing an additional $115 in tax relief to a family that chooses the standard deduction.

Our plan will responsibly protect the state’s existing revenue streams and AAA bond rating. Due to the federal tax law and our growing economy, even after providing tax relief the state will still take in more revenue for things like education and transportation.

The General Assembly will have to address this tax policy question immediately in order to begin crafting a budget. We cannot make responsible spending decisions until we have an agreement on tax relief.

DEL. C. MATTHEW FARRIS represents Buckingham in the Virginia House of Delegates. His email address is DelMFariss@house.virginia. gov.