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Grantor’s tax should be repealed, too
Re: “Kaine urges lawmakers to repeal abusive-driver fees,” Jan. 10
Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine now wants to repeal the abusive-driver fees contained in Virginia’s 2007 transportation law, even though he signed that law and proposed similar fees starting in 2004.
The law was a package deal. If “abuser fees” are repealed, so too should the biggest tax authorized by the law, the “grantor’s tax” on homeowners. That tax is $2,000 on the sale of a $500,000 home. The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority will waste it on vanity projects like a streetcar line.
Like the abuser fees, the grantor’s tax is paid only by Virginians. Out-of-state motorists who use Virginia roads do not pay either of them. Gov. Kaine himself modified the abuser fees to exempt non-Virginians.
Even worse, the grantor’s tax makes homeowners pay for roads even if they seldom use them — unlike abuser fees, which apply only to those who misuse the roads.
Counsel
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Metro, Fairfax supervisors misled the public about parking spaces
Re: “Fairfax nixes parking add-on at Vienna Metro,” Jan. 15
Fairfax Supervisor Linda Smyth’s rationale for nixing a plan to replace nearly 700 parking spaces lost in November 2006 at the Vienna Metro misses one major point: Metro riders were left with the impression — by both Fairfax County and Metro — that the spaces would be replaced.
Smyth says: “We were expecting to be inundated, and we didn’t get any [complaints].”
Why would Metro riders such as myself have complained when we were led to believe that the parking shortage would be temporary, based on what can now be called a naive faith that both Metro and the Board of Supervisors would actually follow through on the plan they both approved for new parking?
Fairfax
Black Americans should have heeded Falwell’s preaching
Re: “No comparison between King, Falwell,” from readers, Jan. 15
Granted, Jerry Falwell never explicitly supported black Americans, but he nevertheless preached fervently against abortion and for retention of traditional Bible-based marriage. Most of black America today suffers grave, adverse consequences from extramarital sex, resulting in a 70 percent illegitimacy rate.
Abortions are performed in black America two to three times as often as within the white community. Without the right to life, you can just forget about all other civil rights.
Falwell often called for resolution of international conflicts through use of American military armed force, whereas Dr. King called for resolution of the same by peaceful, nonviolent means.
Yet despite his persistent advocacy of racial reconciliation for the rest of the nation, Dr. King made no effort to desegregate his own church. Setting an example of righteousness ought to begin at home.
Lawrence K. Marsh
Transportation column is greatly missed
Re: “Bring back ‘Sprawl & Crawl’,” from readers, Jan. 9
I was catching up on a week’s worth of Examiners at lunchtime when I saw Steve Posniak’s letter asking you to bring back Steve Eldridge’s “Sprawl & Crawl” column. I had been looking for that column for over a week and surmised that Steve was on vacation. Now I find out The Examiner, in its dubious judgment, has terminated his column.
Mr. Posniak is right: “Sprawl & Crawl” was one of the few bright spots in The Examiner, a place where weary commuters could find out the latest in local transportation issues, especially regarding Metro, and share their thoughts and suggestions. Mr. Eldridge placed himself as a go-between for Metro and its commuters and was often able to get answers to our questions where we alone would have failed.
Now I’m wondering whether to bother picking up The Examiner on my way into the Metro every morning. There hardly seems much reason to do so any longer.
Elaine MacConnell
Fairfax
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