Lawmakers return to Richmond for transportation fight

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - Virginia lawmakers return to Richmond today for what is expected to be a bitter battle over a broad set of tax increases to fund the commonwealth’s ailing network of roads, bridges and rails.

The special transportation session is the first since the General Assembly’s fruitless endeavor in 2006. In the two years since, the commonwealth has seen an omnibus transportation package passed by the General Assembly that was quickly criticized for its exorbitant fees on bad drivers and then hollowed out by the Virginia Supreme Court for its unconstitutional taxing mechanisms.

At least three distinct proposals will be put forth to replace the now largely defunct omnibus package, one from the governor, another from Senate Democrats and a third, regional bill from Northern Virginia Republican delegates. The first two will seek additional statewide tax increases to begin closing a growing highway maintenance deficit and paying for more construction on road and rail projects.

Gov. Tim Kaine’s plan would raise $1.1 billion by 2014 by increasing taxes on motor vehicle and home sales across the state, as well as the sales tax in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. It does not include a gas tax, which will be a key element of the Senate’s plan. Both plans are expected to run into strong opposition from anti-tax forces, especially in the GOP-controlled House.

Kaine and Democratic legislators have sought to counter their opponents by pointing to the maintenance gap, which last week caused the Commonwealth Transportation Board to divert $2.75 billion meant for construction projects to cover the shortfall. House leaders called the problem overblown.

Dels. Tom Rust, R-Herndon, Joe May, R-Leesburg, and Dave Albo, R-Springfield, will propose a bill to raise more than $400 million a year in Northern Virginia, that would be tied to an external audit of the Virginia Department of Transportation, Rust said Friday.

“People are raising issues with the performance of VDOT as a reason not to go forward with any potential additional funding,” he said. “This would answer it.”

The audit would address where the maintenance money is going and how it is being used, according to Rust.

“I don’t think they’ve ever had that kind of scrutiny in the past,” he said. “It would be an attempt to answer once and for all whether VDOT is doing what they’re supposed to be doing, or are they not.”

VDOT has been repeatedly audited since 2002 and has shown “a clear path of management and output improvements as a result,” according to Virginia Transportation Secretary Pierce Homer. For example, 85 percent of projects are now finished on time, a figure that was once lower than 25 percent. The percentage of projects on budget has also vastly improved.

A bill passed in 2007 requires the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to examine VDOT’s budget every two years.

wflook@dcexaminer.com

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