Thursday, April 13, 2006
Va.: On Road Funding, Kaine Finds Slow-Growth Camp Is No Ally
On Road Funding, Kaine Finds Slow-Growth Camp Is No Ally
By Michael D. Shear
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 16, 2006; VA04
In 2002, Gov. Mark R. Warner (D) put his chief political strategist (now helping to run his presidential exploration) in charge of winning a referendum on a sales tax for transportation in Northern Virginia.
He made sure that Mary K. " Mame" Reiley had $2 million and a virtual who's who of the business world to counter the expected barrage from anti-tax activists and lawmakers.
But the tax effort lost, and it was the surprisingly strong opposition from another quarter -- the slow-growth and environmental crowds -- that caused Warner to fume about betrayal.
Fast-forward four years. Just elected and planning another fight for transportation funds, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) was determined
to woo the green and slow-growth groups to his side.
It looks as though he has failed.
With Kaine's proposal for higher taxes in limbo, the leaders of the Coalition for Smarter Growth and the Piedmont Environmental Council issued a statement three days before the end of the 2006 General Assembly session: "Far too much emphasis has been placed on increasing transportation funding and far too little on better growth management or transportation planning reform" at the Virginia Department of Transportation, said Stewart Schwartz , the coalition's executive director.
By Michael D. Shear
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 16, 2006; VA04
In 2002, Gov. Mark R. Warner (D) put his chief political strategist (now helping to run his presidential exploration) in charge of winning a referendum on a sales tax for transportation in Northern Virginia.
He made sure that Mary K. " Mame" Reiley had $2 million and a virtual who's who of the business world to counter the expected barrage from anti-tax activists and lawmakers.
But the tax effort lost, and it was the surprisingly strong opposition from another quarter -- the slow-growth and environmental crowds -- that caused Warner to fume about betrayal.
Fast-forward four years. Just elected and planning another fight for transportation funds, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) was determined
to woo the green and slow-growth groups to his side.
It looks as though he has failed.
With Kaine's proposal for higher taxes in limbo, the leaders of the Coalition for Smarter Growth and the Piedmont Environmental Council issued a statement three days before the end of the 2006 General Assembly session: "Far too much emphasis has been placed on increasing transportation funding and far too little on better growth management or transportation planning reform" at the Virginia Department of Transportation, said Stewart Schwartz , the coalition's executive director.
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