Well, that didn’t take long. Mere hours after my latest warning about what Bill Howell would do, Phillip Hamilton goes out and proves me right (Washington Post):
House Republican leaders are expected to move ahead today with a proposal to reestablish regional transportation plans in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, setting up a potential split within the GOP caucus.
Del. Phillip A. Hamilton (R-Newport News) said his proposal, which is expected to be embraced by the House leadership after it is heard by a committee today, will include a mix of state-imposed and locally enacted taxes, a concession for GOP leaders who previously had ruled out state-imposed taxes.
In Northern Virginia, the plan calls for a 2 percent rental car tax, a $5 a night hotel tax and a 40 cent grantors tax. There would also be a $100 initial vehicle registration fee. All of the money raised would stay in Northern Virginia to build roads.
“All along, we have said we are willing to address the regional components,” said Hamilton, noting all the new taxes in Hampton Roads would be state imposed.
Here we go again.
The bill itself (HB 6055, co-sponsored by Dave Albo) would do the following (read it and weep):
- Impose a rental car tax (2%) on Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads
- “Allow” localities in Northern Virginia to impose a grantor’s tax (0.4%), but once imposed, it can never be repealed so long as the NVTA is building something in the locality (and the NVTA gets all the dough)
- “Allow” localities in Northern Virginia to impose transient occupancy tax (2%), but once imposed, it can never be repealed so long as the NVTA is building something in the locality (and the NVTA gets all the dough)
- Allow localities in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads to impose a real estate tax (0.25% in NoVA, 0.1% in HR)
- Any localities in Northern Virginia that refuse to impose the fees get no NVTA road projects (just like HB3202 last year, it puts a gun to the head of the localities)
- Allows all other localities with a population over 500,000 – or any jurisdiction bordering it, or any city with a population of 265,000 to impose a local income tax (pursuant to a referendum)
That’s just the taxes. Get a load of where the money goes (besides for “transportation”).
- The NVTA can be “an advocate for the transportation needs of Northern Virginia before the state and federal governments,” in other words, they can use taxpayer money to lobby for more taxpayer money
- The funding in Hampton Roads will be determined by the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Planning Organization (another appointed group). In other words, Hampton Roads trades one regional government for another.
In short, Hamilton and Albo brought back HB3202 – and worse.
In response, Bill Howell sent it out of his Rules Committee and on to the floor by 10-5 vote (all eight Republicans back the monstrosity).
To make matters worse, Howell also had the Senate multi-tax disaster sent to the floor on an 11-4 vote (once again, all eight Republicans voted aye).
Meanwhile, all of Bob Marshall’s bills to reduce spending (and Jeff Frederick’s bill to download local roads) are still buried in committee.
Simply put, this is appalling. Bill Howell has revealed himself to be a weak, cowardly, tax-hiking cipher (again). If there was ever any doubt about the need for new leadership in the House of Delegates, that doubt is gone.
Cross-posted to Bloggers 4 Bob Marshall 4 Speaker
That grantors tax is steep as all get out! What I hate about it is that you pay the thing over 30 years or the term of your mortgage unless you pay cash for the home… that doesn’t happen every day.
[...] D.J. and the Mason Conservative discuss the special transportation session and clarify how Delegate Hamilton, Speaker Howell and who knows who else are ignoring wishes of the people. [...]
Is Bill Howell completely stupid or utterly insane?
Is he trying to make sure no Republican ever gets elected in Northern Virginia or Hampton Roads again?
And isn’t Jeff Frederick and Bob Marshall both from Northern Virginia?
Or is this just a crazy conspiracy theory from me?
[...] GOP Leaders in Virginia House of Delegates Push Tax Hike Plan Filed under: Uncategorized — Kristina @ 10:08 am This. Is. Really. Disgusting. [...]
How can you have levy a tax that is unrepealable. There are a lot of taxes that are functionally unrepealable, but I’ve never heard of a tax that was statutorily unrepealable.
[...] beach” to join the tax revolt Wow. Having a blogger step in to take a stand against Bill Howell et al on HB6055 is something in and of itself. When he’s willing to interrupt his own [...]
[...] of Right Wing Liberal, here is a short run-down on the monstrosity that is HB 6055. Not only would we be getting a huge [...]
[...] The last paragrpah is even worse. Does Shapiro really think Bill Howell is blocking tax increases? He was the Speaker who let the Warner tax increase get through in 2004; he was the lead force behind the HB3202 debacle; and he is the lead force behind HB6055, the resurrection of HB3202. [...]
[...] More from the chronicles of the opposition to HB6055 Chris Beer (Mason Conservative) talks about accountability and listening to the voters, something the authors of HB6055 have simply refused to do. [...]
[...] En Fuego As Chris Beer over at Mason Conservative noted over the weekend, the opposition to the monstrosity of HB6055 (a.k.a. HB3202 redux) centers on two issues fundamental to the principles of a republic - stopping unnecessary and [...]
[...] at Deo Vindice has excellent critiques of HB 6055 here and here, while D.J. McGuire makes the point here at The Right-Wing [...]
[...] From the Desk of Bob Marshall The man who should be Speaker had this to say about the transportation session (including the abomination known as HB6055): [...]
[...] the tax arguments (Part I) As I have mentioned in earlier posts, there are two main thrusts against HB6055: the tax argument and the lack of accountability argument. Jim Bowden has been fantastic about [...]
[...] just wrong on HB6055 My friend JR over at Bearing Drift has waded into the debate on HB6055 - actually, he has tried to come to the thing’s defense. Unfortunately, he makes more than [...]
[...] From the Desk of Bob Marshall The man who should be Speaker had this to say about the transportation session (including the abomination known as HB6055): [...]
[...] Republican has insisted that the Senate bill has no chance of passing the House, and that Howell only sent it to the floor to embarrass House Democrats. Yet Garren Shipley, the first fellow to actually give this [...]
[...] Republican has insisted that the Senate bill has no chance of passing the House, and that Howell only sent it to the floor to embarrass House Democrats. Yet Garren Shipley, the first fellow to actually give this [...]
[...] Fantastic news from Prince William County Supervisor Marty Nohe (R – Coles District) is presenting to the Board a resolution opposing the HB6055 debacle. [...]
[...] wrote his entire post, all 1,134 words of it, without one mention of HB6055. How one can go discuss the session, especially including the pressures various delegates are [...]
[...] is history. Sadly, Howell didn’t seem to learn this lesson, and thus he is now peddling HB6055, odds are with the same faulty logic. This time, it is only the House of Delegates that are at [...]
[...] The Washington Times becomes one of the painfully few media sources to mention HB6055 – not by name, but with enough description to reveal its problems: Republicans may face their own [...]
[...] for Delegate Hamilton, well, it’s abundantly clear that he still doesn’t get it. More troubling, however, is how the letter was sent – via Bill Howell (I mysteriously [...]
[...] for Delegate Hamilton, well, it’s abundantly clear that he still doesn’t get it. More troubling, however, is how the letter was sent – via Bill Howell (I mysteriously [...]
[...] do I say unforgiveable? Because the toxic HB6055 will be up for a vote tomorrow, and it may very well be western Republican Delegates that decide [...]
[...] hope Morgan Griffith is right The House Majority leader stuck his neck out for the toxic HB6055, in response to Northern Virginia local officials who panned it (Washington Post, emphasis added): [...]
[...] has, I hope, been taking a look at it for the last two weeks worth of commentary on the toxic HB6055. Here’s Riley’s latest over at VV (emphasis in orginal – note: the [...]
[...] should also note that under the provisions of HB6055, two jurisdictions previously not covered by HB3202 get a say in Hampton Roads funding as members [...]
[...] So Bill Howell and crew have decided to vote down Kaine’s tax hike plan – led by an onerous grantor’s tax – on the floor, then come right back and propose something that inflicts the very same grantor’s tax on Northern Virginia. [...]
[...] Even better, the House Republican leadership changed course at the eleventh hour and replaced their tax-hike-laden bill with an alternative that spared the people of Virginia from higher taxes and actually tied road [...]