Retirements transform state finance agencies | Govt-and-politics

Last week, Treasurer Manju Ganeriwala retired after more than 13 years in the job under five governors — overseeing investment of public funds and managing debt — and more than than 30 years in state government.

John Layman, chief economist and director of revenue forecasting at the Department of Taxation, will retire on Aug. 1 after 33 years in state government. The department already has lost Bill White, its assistant commissioner for tax policy, to retirement this year, and the leaders of the Department of Planning and Budget and the Department of Accounts also retired earlier this year after long careers in state government.

Those four agencies – Treasury, Tax, Planning and Budget, and Accounts – have been the cornerstones of Virginia’s government finances, guiding elected and appointed officials through the ups and downs of the economy, public revenues, tax policy and budget choices.

“The continuity within state government itself has been key over the years,” said Emily Walker, vice president of advocacy at the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants, which advocates on tax policy in the General Assembly.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin has moved quickly to replace leaders at the finance agencies, which are central to his political agenda of reducing taxes and controlling government spending. He replaced Ganeriwala as state treasurer this month with David L. Richardson, who had retired after nearly 44 years at McGuireWoods law firm in Richmond, specializing in tax-exempt bond financing for public entities and nonprofit organizations.

“Manju was a dedicated public servant and the governor thanks her for her service,” spokesperson Macaulay Porter said last week. “Virginia’s state treasurer plays a critical role in providing statewide finance services.”

When Comptroller David Von Moll retired in April after 21 years leading the Department of Accounts, Youngkin appointed Deputy Comptroller Randy McCabe to the top job. Longtime budget analyst Michael Maul replaced Dan Timberlake as director of the Department of Planning and Budget. Kirstin Collins, who had been director of policy development at the tax department and its public face in dealing with General Assembly money committees, is replacing White as assistant commissioner for tax policy.

Youngkin reappointed Craig Burns as tax commissioner, a job he has held for 12 years. Only Layman, whose economic analyses were critical to charting state budget revenues, has not yet been replaced. Burns will appoint replacements for Layman and White.

“We tend to lose some institutional knowledge from time to time, but we’ve got some very fast learners,” said House Appropriations Chairman Barry Knight, R-Virginia Beach.

Secretary of Finance Steve Cummings has reshaped his own office with the recent retirement of Deputy Secretary June Jennings, an accountant who had served in state government for more than 30 years.

Youngkin recently appointed John Markowitz as deputy finance secretary. Markowitz previously had worked for Transurban North America, a private transportation company that partners with Virginia and other states on public-private transportation partnerships.

The governor also appointed Dan Kowalski, a former official in the U.S. Treasury Department under then-President Donald Trump, as a special adviser to Cummings.

The wave of retirements comes in the first six months of a new administration under Youngkin, the first Republican to serve as Virginia’s governor since Bob McDonnell left office at the beginning of 2014, but Knight said, “I think a lot of it is generational.”

Former Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne, a retired CPA who oversaw all of the finance agencies under then-Gov. Ralph Northam, said he probably would have had to cope with the retirements if he were still secretary.

“I think it’s just going to be a time for a reset,” Layne said.