Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is working on a new transportation-funding plan in preparation for the special General Assembly session. Details are not yet available, but the governor has articulated at least three main principles, reports the Daily Press.
- The plan will address funding for the two most congested regions of the state — Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia.
- The plan will be simple, replacing the patchwork of taxes, fines and fees passed by the General Assembly last year.
- The plan will address the ever-increasing claim of the maintenance budget on Transportation Trust Fund dollars. As maintenance requirements grow, money is running short for construction funds.
Missing from the Daily Press account is the phrase “user pays.”
According to the Daily Press, GOP lawmakers on the Peninsula are pushing for a regional sales tax. Such a levy has only one virtue: the ability to raise lots of money while not pinching anyone too badly at any one time. But it would represent a massive transfer of wealth to drivers from non-drivers, subsidize auto-dependency and prolong Virginia’s vulnerability to rising gasoline prices. We can only pray that Gov. Kaine doesn’t have that idea in mind.