McDonnell touts transportation plan
An analysis of 10 highway projects funded by Gov. Bob McDonnell’s 2011 $4 billion transportation program shows they will provide nearly 3,700 direct jobs during their construction, $190.8 million in personal income, $14.8 million in state and local tax revenues and other benefits to Virginia.
“The Virginia Department of Transportation advertised more than $2 billion worth of construction and maintenance contracts last year, a direct result of the money provided by our 2011 transportation package, which the General Assembly approved,” McDonnell said. “This review of a cross section of new VDOT road projects clearly illustrates that putting such work on the street in turn puts Virginians to work and returns other financial benefits back to the commonwealth.” Continue reading “McDonnell touts transportation plan” »
Governor releases transportation plan
Gov. Bob McDonnell announced on Friday details of his 2012 General Assembly session transportation plan, wihch he said will provide additional funding for maintaining Virginia’s infrastructure and will continue the administration’s efforts to ensure greater accountability and transparency in Virginia’s transportation entities while delivering transportation projects more quickly and cost effectively.
“Last year, working across party lines, we took a significant step forward in addressing Virginia’s long-neglected transportation system by implementing reforms to transportation agencies and by accelerating projects and bond funding that had languished in bureaucracy. Collectively, we put the most new funding into transportation in a generation,” said McDonnell. Continue reading “Governor releases transportation plan” »
McDonnell: More than $2B in road, bridge contracts advertised in 2011
Gov. Bob McDonnell announced on Wednesday that the Virginia Department of Transportation advertised more than $2 billion worth of construction and maintenance contracts during 2011.
Contracts include repaving, bridge repairs and replacements, intersection and safety improvements and road widenings among several other transportation projects across the state.
“I tasked VDOT to push projects out the door and accelerate project delivery to get Virginia moving and out of gridlock,” McDonnell said. “VDOT and the construction industry moved aggressively to maximize their financial and labor resources, resulting in significant progress to make Virginia’s roads and bridges safer and better to travel on, in addition to creating jobs and stimulating the economy.” Continue reading “McDonnell: More than $2B in road, bridge contracts advertised in 2011” »
McDonnell outlines roads plan
Speaking to more than 700 hundred industry and transportation agency professionals during the 2011 Governor’s Transportation Conference in Norfolk, Gov. Bob McDonnell today outlined his transportation policy and funding plans for the upcoming 2012 General Assembly Session.
The governor called for changes in laws governing the allocation of future surpluses to transportation, dedicating portions of revenue growth attributable to transportation infrastructure projects to transportation, increasing the portion of sales tax dedicated to transportation, the establishment of an Interstate 85 Connector Economic Development and Promotion Zone to encourage businesses to invest in Virginia and ship through Virginia ports, and the advancement of Virginia’s commercial space flight programs.
The governor’s new proposals follow the successful passage of his 2011 transportation agenda, which put the most new funding into roads and rail in the state in 25 years.
“Transportation and economic development and prosperity are inextricably linked,” said McDonnell. “Whether it’s the infrastructure needed to move people and goods, or certain transportation-related industries poised for major growth and job creation, we must continue to make progress in improving our transportation networks if Virginia is to remain economically competitive.”
Virginia has made significant advances in transportation under the McDonnell administration. These include, among others:
· A historic investment in transportation of $4 billion over the next three years, done without raising taxes. This is the biggest infusion of new funding for transportation in Virginia in 25 years.
· Reopening 19 closed rest areas and developing innovative new partnerships with the private sector to offset rest area maintenance and operating costs
· Completing four audits of transportation agencies resulting in the identification of more than $1.4 billion in unspent transportation funds and a more streamlined project development process to expedite construction and maintenance work
· Creating the Office of Transportation Public-Private Partnerships
· Developing a new multimodal strategic plan that focuses on supporting economic opportunity, improving planning and implementation processes, and a renewed emphasis on customer satisfaction
· Working with the Federal Highway Administration to move forward with tolling Interstate 95
· Recent signings of major public-private transportation agreements including;
· The Downtown-Midtown Tunnel/MLK Extension Project
· The I-95 HOT Lanes Project
· The Pound Connector and Doe Branch sections of Coalfields Expressway
· The next eight-mile phase of Route 58 improvements along the 36-mile corridor between Hillsville and Stuart
· Advancing the I-85 Connector, a new interstate-style Route 460 between Petersburg and Suffolk
An independent economic analysis by Chmura Economics showed that once fully implemented, last year’s transportation package would grow the Virginia economy by over $13 billion and sustain an additional 104,000 jobs. This year’s package will build upon that impact.
2012 Transportation Plan Highlights
The governor’s proposed transportation plan for 2012 includes the following revenue-enhancements and policies to promote transportation investment:
· Increasing transportation’s share of year-end surpluses to 75 percent. This measure will provide transportation with additional revenues without jeopardizing other key areas of need. Over the past 2 years, $100 million in surplus has been sent to transportation.
· Authorizing the Commonwealth Transportation Board to implement a version of tax-increment financing. When the state funds a major new piece of transportation infrastructure, transportation should receive a portion of the growth in state tax revenues that result from economic development surrounding the project. These revenues will be reinvested in additional projects that can help spur additional development.
· Increasing the dedicated transportation allocation of the sales tax from .5 percent to .75 percent over the next 8 years. During the upcoming budget, increasing the dedicated sales tax percentage to .55 percent generating over $110 million in new transportation funding going to maintenance
· Proposing that the first 1 percent in revenue growth over 5 percent each year be dedicated to transportation
· Expanding VDOT’s Revenue Sharing Program to include maintenance. Currently, the state will match local money dollar-for-dollar on capital improvements within a locality. Enabling maintenance projects to be eligible for this program will help make our maintenance dollars go farther.
· Legislation to restructure and fund the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority and turn it into a true independent agency to develop the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport into the number one commercial space flight facility in the nation
· Legislation to promote the Port of Virginia by eliminating some of the bureaucratic processes with which the Virginia Port Authority must comply and creating the I-85 Connector Economic Development and Promotion Zone, wherein companies shipping goods through the port or engaged in maritime commerce can operate income tax free for their first two years in operation
The governor will announce additional proposals and more detail of this year’s transportation package over the next month leading up to 2012 General Assembly session.
Administration pushes state roads projects through design-build
Gov. Bob McDonnell today announced that the Virginia Department of Transportation is using design-build procurement methods to accelerate the delivery of several projects made possible through the governor’s transportation funding package which was adopted by the 2011 General Assembly, and other federal dollars.
The design-build procurement method streamlines project delivery by placing responsibility for the design and construction of a project on a single entity. The design-build team constructs the project while design is still under way, greatly reducing the overall time necessary for completion of the project.
The design-build procurement method enables VDOT to award contracts quicker, thereby expediting the construction process. Design-build contracts, ultimately, result in faster delivery of projects and cost savings to the commonwealth.
“We are dedicated to maximizing every dollar of the transportation funding package and other federal funds to create jobs and develop projects that continue to improve Virginia’s transportation infrastructure,” said Governor McDonnell. “For too long, Virginians have endured traffic snarls and transportation delays. By using design-build to speed our nearly $4 billion transportation investment to construction, Virginians will be able to experience transportation relief faster and we will create transportation industry jobs during this difficult economy.”
The following design-build projects have been or will be released before December 2011:
· Route 29 Western Bypass: This project is in the Culpeper District and will build a new 6.2-mile, four-lane, limited-access roadway stretching from Route 29 just north of the South Fork Rivanna River to the Route 29/250 Bypass. The project includes interchanges at both termini to move traffic between Route 29 north and Route 29/250 west of Charlottesville. This project was advertised on Sept. 27, 2011, and has an estimated value of $244.5 million.
· Interstate 581/Valley View Interchange Phase II: This project is in the Salem District and includes the design and construction and overall project management at the interchange of Valley View Boulevard and Interstate 581 in the city of Roanoke. This project was advertised on Oct. 11, 2011, and has an estimated value of $63.9 million.
· Interstate 66 Active Traffic Management: This project is in the Northern Virginia District and is designed to improve traffic operations along a 32-mile segment of I-66 from the District of Columbia and Virginia border in Arlington to U.S. 29 (Lee Highway) in Gainesville. This project was advertised on Oct. 25, 2011, and has an estimated value of $33.8 million.
· Interstate 64 Exit 91 Interchange Improvements: The project is in the Staunton District and is located at the Interstate 64 Exit 91 interchange with Route 285 (Tinkling Spring Road) in Augusta County and includes interstates and bridge improvements. This project was advertised on Nov. 3, 2011, and has an estimated value of $43.7 million.
· Interstate 64 Zion Crossroads Interchange Improvement: This project is in the Culpeper District and will improve the I-64 interchange on Route 15 at Zion Crossroads (Exit 136) in Louisa County. The project intends to increase the capacity of the I-64 off-ramps at the Route 15 interchange, improving safety and relieving congestion. This project is scheduled to be advertised in Dec. 2011, and has an estimated value of $8.8 million.
VDOT is working to release the following design-build projects in 2012:
· Interstate 66 Widening to Route 15: This project is in the Northern Virginia District and is valued at $78.1 million.
· Interstate 64 Widening and Improvements to Route 623 Interchange: This project is in the Richmond District and is valued at $35.8 million.
· Interstate 395 HOV Ramp at Seminary Road: This project is in the Northern Virginia District and is valued at $80 million.
· Virginia Capital Trail Charles City County and New Market Heights Trail: This project is in the Richmond District and is valued at $11.9 million.
· Route 5 Virginia Capital Trail Varina Phase: This project is in the Richmond District and is valued at $9.5 million.
For more information on design-build projects, visit
http://www.vdot.virginia.gov/business/design-build.asp
State completes $600M road bond sale
The Commonwealth Transportation Board completed the sale of $600 million of Commonwealth of Virginia Transportation Capital Projects Revenue Bonds on May 11 to advance transportation projects managed by the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation.
The bonds were sold through a competitive bidding process. Seven underwriters submitted highly competitive bids on the bonds. Wells Fargo Bank secured the winning bid with a true interest cost of 4.025 percent. The bonds were rated AA+ by Fitch and Standard and Poor’s, and Aa1 by Moody’s.
“This infusion of funds is the first step in the plan to help accelerate or complete more than 900 projects I recommended as part of our transportation funding package,” said Gov. Bob McDonnell. “These bond proceeds will begin funding the largest investment in Virginia’s transportation network in a generation and comes at a time when interest rates and construction costs are at near historic lows.”
This bond sale is the first of three planned $600 million issuances of Transportation Capital Projects Revenue Bonds over three years. It is the first step in the governor’s plan to invest nearly $4 billion in roads, rail and transit during the next three years as supported by House Bill 2527 and Senate Bill 1446 of the 2011 General Assembly. It is the second issuance of the Capital Projects Revenue Bonds that were authorized by the General Assembly in 2007.
“This year, the General Assembly put partisanship aside and recognized that for Virginia to retain its status as the friendliest state in the nation for business, we must invest in transportation and create much-needed jobs throughout our commonwealth,” added McDonnell. “There is no better time to start getting transportation in Virginia moving again. Virginians all across the Commonwealth can expect to see construction on an unprecedented scale during the next three years.”
As a component of the transportation funding package, the bond sale will provide funding for transportation projects across the Commonwealth reflected in the update to the Commonwealth Transportation Board’s Fiscal Years 2012-2017 Six-Year Improvement Program this spring.
The 17-member CTB, appointed by the governor, establishes the administrative policies for Virginia’s transportation system. The CTB allocates highway funding to specific projects, locates routes and provides funding for airports, seaports and public transportation.
David Reynolds: Pay at the pump
How shall we pay for roads? It’s a simple question but Virginia likes to make it difficult. Every year governors and the General Assembly wrestle with the question, yet fail to come up with a satisfactory answer. 2011 is no exception.
Those running this state live in another state — the state of denial. As a result they believe they can get Virginia moving again by the following: building 18th Century toll roads; ending 20th century Prohibition; carving up Virginia; creating urban-rural wars; and the latest, by making interest payments instead of making roads.
None will work. Because few have the political courage to say that the solution to our transportation needs can be seen at every busy intersection. It is called the gas tax. It is almost the perfect tax — an easy to administer fee that directly benefits the user. If God imposed an angel fuel tax for every flight into heaven I would not object.
Yet here on earth the state’s ruling class believes that a hike in the gas tax is a punishable crime. The punishment, they believe, is being booted out of office. But you and I don’t hold office. So we have higher priorities. It is personal mobility and having that package delivered on time. Our punishment is different. We sit behind a wheel and don’t move. And that special package arrives late.
Virginians are smart. They know that such punishment is not necessary. They know that the state gas tax was last raised when many of us were too young to hold of a driver’s license. It was in 1987, over 24 years ago, when we last raised the tax. However, if the gas tax is raised just a Jefferson nickel, almost $200 million could be dedicated to meeting our transportation needs! Using data provided by DMV we know that in Fiscal 2010 $700 million was collected on almost four billion gallons sold in Virginia. At 17.5 cents per gallon that equals $40 million for each penny of tax.
We all know the tired arguments against raising the gas tax. Let’s take the GOP mantra: Hard working Virginians can not afford any additional taxes in these tough times. Fact: If the gas tax went up five cents an area worker commuting to Charlottesville with a car getting 20 mpg would have his weekly travel expenses increased by a whopping $1.25. That is less than the cost of one cup of coffee. For the whole week! And far less than February’s hike in pump prices.
Then there is the argument that Virginia would become less competitive with its neighboring states. Fact: The average gas tax in our neighboring states is almost a dime higher, ranging from $0.214 for Tennessee to $0.322 for West Virginia and North Carolina. Maryland is $0.235.
Then there is the argument that if the state tax is raised, the federal tax, now 18.4 cents, compounds the burden. That is one way to look at our political world — let the federal government do the heavy lifting. And complain.
As for those “No new tax” pledges, they mean no increase in the total tax burden. The voting majority will accept a “zero-sum” tax game whereby tax increases in one area are offset by deceases in another. Our new governor has failed to do that. According to one state senator, the $191 million in savings touted by Mr. McDonnell is mainly a shifting of who pays rather than addressing actual efficiencies to reduce costs.
Too many governors and too members of the General Assembly assume that every penny of the gas tax is passed on to the public. Not so. If that were the case the pump price difference would be exactly the tax difference. The wholesale distributor and the retailer are still in charge of setting prices. For example, the average pump price in North Carolina is six cents above Virginia while the NC tax is 9 cents higher. The same story holds for our other neighboring states.
Two more points. (1) When revenues are dedicated to specific programs, i.e., lottery proceeds that support public schools, there is broad public support. Otherwise we would not have lottery ads. (2) Out-of-state drivers pay up to a third of the fuel taxes collected in Virginia. I guess we don’t want others to help pay for our roads.
Now that you are with me, the issue becomes how to do it. Indexing is always politically safe. If Governor Baliles’ 1987 hike were indexed to inflation the state gas tax would be about double or 35 cents per gallon. Or a gradual increase of a few pennies a year should be politically safe. But, as usual, Richmond misreads Virginia.
So why blame government when the fault, dear Brutes, lies with ourselves. And the Japanese. Car manufacturers are building more fuel-efficient vehicles. We buy them. Why not build and buy more gas guzzlers? That way more gas would be sold and more tax collected.
Bad idea? That’s what I thought. Would you settle for buying less gasoline but add a nickel or a dime to it? Good! Virginia, we have lift off.
Column by David Reynolds
Conservation, smart-growth groups oppose McDonnell roads plan
A coalition of conservation and smart-growth groups are saying today that they oppose Gov. Bob McDonnell’s $4 billion transportation plan on financing and spending grounds.
“The plan is anything but conservative on two counts. It involves too much borrowing and debt reminiscent of what got our households and nation into trouble over the last decade, and it will not address the underlying origins of our traffic congestion,” said Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
McDonnell is pushing a plan largely based on borrowing through public bonds to jumpstart roads projects in the Commonwealth. Critics on the right and left have raised issue with the proposal to borrow against future federal gas-tax revenues that lies at the heart of the plan.
Roger Diedrich, the transportation chair of the Virginia Sierra Club, noted that Virginia has gone this route before, and that it took years for the Commonwealth to pay back the bonds.
“We shouldn’t repeat the mistakes of the past by borrowing and spending our future federal gas tax revenues,” Diedrich said.
Chris Miller, president of the Piedmont Environmental Council, is critical of the effort to begin a spate of new construction with the $3.5 billion backlog in structurally deficient bridges, deficient pavement, aging Metro and other transit systems.
“Many of these projects would reignite the land speculation that got us into trouble in the first place,” Miller said.
Edited by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
The AFP on WREL: Budget season
AFP editor Chris Graham talks news and politics with WREL’s “Online with Jim Bresnahan.”
Gov. Bob McDonnell got the 2011 Virginia General Assembly rolling with his State of the Commonwealth address Wednesday. McDonnell seems to be trying to put his imprint on this second legislative session as governor after an uneventful first year in office, according to Chris.
In other news, Chris talks about the continued growth in state revenues evidenced in the strong December numbers and what that means for the state economic situation.
McDonnell adds to roads plans
A key part of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s plan to get Virginia transportation moving would rededicate a portion of sales-tax revenues from the pot of money used to fund schools and public safety to roads projects in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads.
McDonnell said today that he will back legislation to move about $140 million a year in sales-tax revenues generated in the two congested regions to go to roads projects in those areas. The governor also continued his push for the privatization of the state’s Alcohol Beverage Control system that he says will infuse $300 million into the new Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank. Earlier the Republican had introduced plans criticized on both sides of the aisle as “borrow and spend” to add close to $3 billion in bonds to the transportation funding mix.
“The time to build new roads and bridges is now. Interest rates and construction costs are at an all time low; we’re taking advantage of this and taxpayers from all regions of the Commonwealth will benefit,” McDonnell said today. “Our proposals will dramatically speed up the construction of new roads and bridges, ease congestion, and increase job-creation and economic-development efforts statewide. Nearly 900 projects will benefit from our proposals, and Virginians will get to work and back home again as a result.”
Details on the McDonnell transportation agenda announced today:
- Retain 0.25 percent of discretionary sales tax generated within Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia to transportation improvements in those regions.
- Pass a constitutional amendment to permanently protect the Commonwealth Transportation Fund from transfers to the General Fund.
- Enable allocations from the Rail Enhancement Fund to be used as matching funds for federal grants to support rail projects.
- Transferring the administration of the motor vehicle rental tax from DMV to the Department of Taxation.
- Providing for the issuance of special license plates for businesses.
- Privatize the retail operations of the Alcohol Beverage Control and generate an initial $300 million to go into the Transportation Infrastructure Bank.
- Provide a tax credit to employers for expenses incurred in allowing employees to telework pursuant to a signed telework agreement. An employer would be eligible for a credit of up to $1,200 per teleworking employee, depending on the number of days per month an employee will telework. The total credit amount any one employer may take for 2012 and 2013 is $50,000. The aggregate amount of tax credits that will be issued is capped at $1 million annually for taxable year 2012 and 2013.
- Consolidate the duties of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission and the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission into one organization. Gov. McDonnell will provide additional funding to the newly consolidated Northern Virginia Transportation Authority through his funding proposals.
- Amend the powers and duties of the CTB by clarifying that local roads in counties outside the state secondary highway system are local roads, and not part of the state system, increasing the limitation on contract values that the Commissioner and the Director of DRPT may let, eliminating the duty of the CTB to regulate outdoor theatres, providing for the updating of the Statewide Transportation Plan every four years instead of 5, and repealing the section that allows the CTB to designate its employees as special police officers.
- Reduce bureaucratic procurement regulations to reduce costs and create new efficiencies by eliminating the requirement to advertise Requests for Proposals in the newspaper and increasing initial contract terms for environmental, location and design, and inspection work.
- Amending the powers of the VDOT Commissioner to give him more flexibility in structuring agency personnel, reduce project delivery times, and streamline reporting requirements. The proposals include eliminating the requirement for a Deputy Commissioner for the environment, transportation and regulatory affairs, allowing the Commissioner to transfer, abandon or discontinue roads and sell surplus right-of-way associated with a construction project without Commonwealth Transportation Board approval, and allowing VDOT to submit one comprehensive annual report.
- Grant a $50 per container income tax credit for any company which ships cargo containers via barge or rail. This proposal will reduce emissions and congestion along the Interstate 64 Corridor in Hampton Roads.
Previously announced McDonnell roads proposals:
- Direct $150 million to transportation from budget surplus. These one-time funds will go to the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank.
- Create Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank to multiply transportation dollars.
- Capitalize the bank with $150 million from surplus and $250 million from audit-identified funds; Goal is to provide an initial $400 million and $1 billion total during administration.
- Modify Virginia Code to authorize Direct GARVEE bonds. This would allow the Commonwealth to issue up to $1.1 billion in Direct GARVEE bonds and utilize toll credits for state match.
- Accelerate the sales of bonds from 2007 transportation legislation to a maximum of $600 million per year, providing ability to issue up to $1.8 billion in bonds during remainder of the administration.
- Increase the availability of revenue sharing, specifically eliminating the $1 million cap per project and $50 million program maximum.
Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
Ken Plum: Opportunity for leadership
As Spock in the 1991 film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country quoted “an ancient Vulcan proverb, only Nixon could go to China,” only Gov. Bob McDonnell can save Virginia’s transportation funding program from bankruptcy.
Nixon had a strong anti-communist reputation. He was able to go to China and open diplomatic relations without fear of being politically attacked by the right-wing in this country. Two economists studied the phenomenon and developed a model of how “politics often exhibit counterintuitive results…Right-wing politicians sometime can implement policies that left-wing politicians cannot, and vice versa (Cowen and Sutter: “Why Only Nixon Could go to China,” Public Choice 97: 605-615, 1998)
The fact that the Virginia Department of Transportation does not have adequate revenues with which to do its job of either maintaining existing highway infrastructure or constructing new facilities is no longer debated. A press release from the governor’s office Dec. 29, 2010, stated that even with the governor’s proposal to sell bonds, “Still, Virginia’s aging infrastructure requires at least $1 billion a year in new, recurring revenue.” He has asserted in arguments like those used by the Obama administration to support stimulus spending that now is the time with high unemployment and low construction costs that projects should be built. His proposal to borrow nearly $4 billion as a way to move the problem into the next administration has received criticism. The Richmond Times Dispatch editorialized recently that taxing and spending is bad but borrowing and spending is worse.
The governor wrote to legislators in late summer asking for ideas on funding transportation needs. The political implications of his letter became clear when the chairman of the state Republican Party sent a similar letter to Democratic legislators. The tone of that letter was clear: tell us what you would do to fund transportation so that we can run against you next year on that issue.
The other ideas the administration has put forward thus far have been non-starters. Tripling the number of liquor stores throughout the state in order to raise enough money to build one highway interchange holds little hope. Drill, baby, drill! will not happen in our lifetime. Numerous audits of VDOT have not produced a single dime of new money.
Only Nixon could go to China; only Governor McDonnell can fix Virginia’s transportation mess. Time to step up, Mr. Governor. This is your opportunity for leadership!
Column by Ken Plum
Ken Plum: Our fair share
Posted by afp on September 2, 2011 · Leave a Comment
The simplest solution proposed by many especially in election years is revising the highway funding formula to bring more money to one’s region. “Change the formula; get our fair share back to Northern Virginia,” is the promise. Accomplish the task by putting together a coalition of “legislators from the parts of Virginia that have the greatest transportation needs and gather the votes to change the formula.” The results of a recent study seem to throw cold water on this idea. While we contend that we do not get our fair share in Northern Virginia, the results of a study by the Senate Finance Committee staff found that Northern Virginia actually gets back more in transportation funding than it pays in transportation taxes. Certainly we do not get back as much as we want or need, but the study found that the Northern Virginia region with 27.9 percent of the state’s population pays 27.7 percent of the state’s transportation taxes but gets back 32.5 percent of the state’s expenditures for transportation. In contrast, the Richmond region pays 15.9 percent of the state’s transportation taxes and gets back 11.2 percent. Hampton Roads is about even with 20.2 percent of the taxes and 20.1 percent of the expenditures. The small district of Bristol is the only other region of the nine regions in the state to get back more than it put in. Now who is going to join the coalition to send even more money to Northern Virginia? Seems that another simple solution has bitten the dust.
I voted with others for Governor McDonnell’s borrowing scheme to put more money into transportation. For support for his proposal from business organizations and legislators, Governor McDonnell pledged to propose a sustainable and dedicated source of revenue for transportation. I look forward to his proposal as being a serious one and not another ABC sales idea. I will support it if it produces real revenue and if, of course, we in Northern Virginia get our fair share.
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