The Virginia House of Delegates on Tuesday voted almost unanimously to pass a fast-tracked repeal of the hated “abuser fees” on bad drivers, this time without a car-tax measure opposed by the governor.
The Senate delayed action on a similar bill Tuesday after encountering legal issues and is expected to take it up today.
The speedy progress of both bills signals that a repeal of abuser fees is likely to soon reach Gov. Tim Kaine’s desk. The legislation is designed to go into effect as soon as Kaine signs it.
“This will put an end to this abuser fee nightmare that’s dominated the political landscape for the past six months,” said Del. Tim Hugo, R-Centreville, the bill’s patron.
The House voted 96-2 to send the bill to the Senate, though without a proposed refund some had hoped for.
Also missing was a caveat that would have changed how an unrelated 1 percent car registration tax would be collected. Under the House’s first version of the repeal, the Department of Motor Vehicles, not auto dealers, would collect the fee. The change was opposed by Kaine, who warned of long lines at the DMV and said new owners would no longer be able to finance the fee with the purchase.
Both the abuser fees and the car registration fee were enacted as part of a statewide transportation funding package last year. But Virginia residents were outraged after they learned that the abuser fees, designed to raise $65 million a year for road maintenance, applied to only Virginia drivers. Opponents also called the fees excessive.
Kaine said earlier this month he would support repealing the fees and proposed raising a sales tax on cars to replace them.
