Sunday, February 24, 2013
Sen. Chap Petersen spoke out against the bill earlier this year.
- GOVERNMENT
-
Sunday, February 24
By Stephen Nielsen, Capital News Service A divided Virginia Senate on Saturday passed Gov. Bob McDonnell’s signature issue of the 2013 legislative session – a bill to overhaul the state’s system for funding transportation. Just hours before the session’s end, the Senate voted 25-15 for House Bill 2313, which will raise about $880 million a year more for roads and mass transit by increasing sales taxes while lowering the fuels tax. The debate over how to increase revenue continued right up to the vote. Fairfax-area Sen. Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax) voted against it. “This isn’t any bill. This is the only bill,” said Senate Majority Leader Thomas Norment, R-Williamsburg. He said it’s the only way to provide the revenue Virginia’s transportation…
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Del. Mark Keam votes for the amended package, which would eliminate Virginia's gas tax and hike sales taxes to raise $3 billion over five years.
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s controversial transportation bill passed the House of Delegates Finance Committee on Wednesday, moving past its first hurdle in the state's 2013 General Assembly session. In a 14-8 vote along party lines, the committee passed McDonnell’s package, which calls for eliminating the state’s 17.5 cents per gallon gas tax and raising the state sales tax from 5 percent to 5.8 percent. The plan would also keep the 17.5 tax on diesel fuel and increase vehicle registration fees. It would also raise the amount of the state’s sales tax that goes to transportation from 5 to 75 cents over a five-year period. McDonnell said the bill would raise approximately $3 billion in that time, including $1.8 billion for new construction…
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Chap Petersen sounds off on McDonnell's new proposal to fund transportation projects.
Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34) called Gov. Bob McDonnell's proposal to eliminate the gas tax and fund state transportation projects by increasing the sales tax nonsensical in a blog post Wednesday. McDonnell's plan calls for the elimination of the 17.5 cents per gallon gas tax and an increase of the sales tax from 5 percent to 5.8 for more than $600 million in more transportation funds. Read more about the proposal here. If it passes, Virginia would be the first state to fund transportation projects this way. Petersen said: "The [Governor's] justification is that the gas tax at a fixed rate brings in less money in our hybrid age. But that hardly seems like a reason to jettison it. (And no other state has). Indeed, eliminating our traditional…
Friday, March 9, 2012
Law goes into effect July 1.
RICHMOND (Capital News Service) — Gov. Bob McDonnell has signed legislation that will require first-time DUI offenders in Virginia to install a Breathalyzer in their vehicle to prevent them from driving while intoxicated. The governor signed House Bill 279 on Wednesday. As a result, beginning July 1, all Virginians convicted of DUI will have to have an ignition interlock installed in their vehicle. Currently, that requirement applies only to repeat offenders or first-time offenders with blood alcohol content higher than 0.15. Virginia will "join just 15 other U.S. states in requiring this proven effective technology for all persons convicted of drunk driving," Kurt Erickson, president of the Washington Regional Alcohol Program, said …
Becky S.
7:33 am on Monday, February 25, 2013
Kudos to Chap and all the senators who voted against this bill. Raising the sales tax was wrong to begin with, but having a two tier tax in the state is totally unfair and puts the jurisdictions with the higher sales tax at a disadvantage over the rest of the state. It's silly when you stop and think about it b/c folks can just drive into a neighboring jurisdiction with the lower tax (creating … more ›