"We have a chance to fix it," the Democratic governor told reporters.

"Look, we might have the ability to do reimbursements," he said. "I'm not going to commit to that, but if there's a decision made by the legislature, that's one option they could consider."

Virginians statewide have responded with outrage to the "civil remedial fees" payable in three annual installments that can range from $750 for driving with a suspended license to $3,000 for a driving-related felony. Nonresidents are exempt from the fees.

The possibility of refunds is a trade-off that may help Kaine and other supporters of the fees resist calls for a special legislative session to repeal the law this year. Kaine favors mending its flaws after the regular 2008 legislature convenes in January.

Refunds are possible, Kaine said, because the revenue from the fees has not been budgeted.

"The dollars from the abuser fees were not scheduled to be used for another year-and-a-half," he said. Besides refunds, legislators could decide to suspend payment of the second and third installments of the fees, he said.

The fees were passed to help endow Virginia's first major transportation funding law in 21 years. Revenue from the fees is to be reserved for highway maintenance.

Kaine's remarks came one day after Sen. Charles J. Colgan called for not only repealing the prohibitive surcharges Virginia began imposing on its worst drivers July 1, but refunding the fees to all who have paid them.

"I've thought this was a lousy bill all along," Colgan, D-Prince William, said in an interview Friday. He voted against it consistently, but supported the amended version the House and Senate accepted in April.

Colgan and other legislative Democrats have parted with Kaine over the abusive driver provisions in the past three weeks. Unlike many of them, Colgan does not favor a special legislative session this year.

In a news conference with House and Senate Republican leaders last week, Kaine resisted growing calls for a special session to repeal the bill, asking for more time to study the effectiveness of the fees in reducing traffic accidents and dangerous driving.

In addition to political opposition to the fees, the first effort to have courts declare them unconstitutional got on track Thursday. A Henrico County General District Court is expected to render the first ruling on the law by Aug. 2, the first step toward a state Supreme Court decision.

Virginia modeled its penalties against egregious driving on those already in effect in Michigan and New Jersey. But there is no data in either of those states that conclusively demonstrates that roads became safer as a result.

Kaine on Friday cited unspecified "anecdotal evidence" since July 1 that he said suggests the fees are working.

"But six months will really be needed to really look and see _ is it a fluke? Is it serious? Is it a significant reduction? If it comes back that there's no safety effect at all, then obviously that would be an important factor," Kaine said.