House of Delegates committee approves budget compromise

By CHELYEN DAVIS

Date published: 4/8/2004

RICHMOND--A House committee reversed itself today and approved a bill backed by moderate Republicans to raise almost $1 billion in taxes.

But whether that bill can survive a vote from the full House next week remains to be seen.

With no debate, the House Finance Committee voted 10-8 to report out a bill from committee Chairman Del. Harry Parrish, R-Manassas. The bill would raise the state sales tax a half-cent, raise the cigarette tax, lower the food tax, increase standard deductions on the income tax, and make a few other tax changes.

It's an effort by moderate Republicans to nudge stalled budget negotiations with the Senate.

But while there appear to be at least 17 House Republicans considering a vote for the bill, they're under great pressure to back away from it. And it's not clear if all 17 to 19 Republicans in that group will support Parrish's bill.

Some think it goes too far while others fear it won't go far enough to appease the governor and the Senate.

Seventeen Republican delegates met with Democratic Gov. Mark Warner yesterday afternoon after the House recessed.

Warner called the Parrish bill a "breakthrough"--in a written paragraph read aloud on the House floor by Del. Preston Bryant yesterday. Warner said the bill addresses his goals on tax fairness and meeting core spending commitments.

"Combined with the decision by the Senate leadership to remove the new higher income tax brackets from the Senate proposal, passage of this bill by the House in its current form would be a breakthrough that, in my opinion, will lead to a meaningful compromise by all parties. I will continue to encourage the Senate to move as soon as possible to reach a final budget agreement," Warner said in the statement.

Warner's office would not release the statement itself, but after meeting with the lawmakers, Warner said the Republicans backing the tax proposal are "very bold and courageous."

He also said they "need to be reinforced. I urge those folks not to get browbeat over the next few days."

But anti-tax Republicans said Warner must go further in his support for the bill.

House Speaker Bill Howell, R-Stafford, said the governor needs to make a commitment to sign a budget containing the provisions of the Parrish bill--and no more than those provisions.

Date published: 4/8/2004