Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has said that the General Assembly could hold a special session to deal with transportation issues as early as May or June this year. But Chelyen Davis with the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star notes that lawmakers are so far from a consensus about what to do that “it may be months” before such a session could be organized.
The major fault line is between legislators who favor a “statewide” tax increase to finance transportation improvements and those who prefer regional solutions. Republicans, including House Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, tend to fall into the regional-solution camp. Said Howell: “There’s not a crisis statewide that has to be fixed before you can fix what needs to be done for Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads.”
Considering that the Republicans still run the House of Delegates, Howell and his compatriots exercise effective veto power over any proposed solution.
The Democrats, including Kaine, want a statewide solution that brings in a sustainable, long-term revenue flow. Trouble is, they can’t agree on which tax they prefer. Senate Majority Leader Richard Saslaw, D-Springfield, has touted the gas tax, while others have argued for a sales tax. Kaine has not yet expressed a preference.
As far as I can tell, all proposals are based on political expediency — how to extract the most revenue from taxpayers with a minimum of fuss. Very few lawmakers, to my knowledge, have openly endorsed the most economically efficient and environmentally benign scheme of all: “user pays.”
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