Language that could have derailed plans to extend Metrorail to Dulles Airport will be stripped from a bill introduced last week that implements a transportation-funding package agreed to by top General Assembly Republicans.
The provision, near the end of the mammoth bill, would have nixed the Virginia Department of Transportation’s agreement with the Metropolitan Airports Authority to give MWAA control of the Dulles Toll Road. The authority, which operates Dulles, will use the toll revenue to finance a substantial portion of the project. Without the agreement and MWAA’s share of the funding, the rail extension’s future would have been in serious peril, said Secretary of Transportation Pierce Homer.
G. Paul Nardo, chief of staff for House Speaker William Howell, told The Examiner Monday afternoon that the language was a “technical mistake” and will be stricken.
“While the speaker has long-standing concerns about the commonwealth transferring one of its major assets without any legislative input or approval, that is a totally separate issue from our shared goal of advancing the sprawl/land use changes, VDOT reforms and bonding/funding improvements that lie at the heart of [the funding plan],” Nardo said.
When asked earlier Monday about the provision, first disclosed by The Examiner in Monday’s edition, Howell said he “was not aware of that.”
“That can be fixed,” the Stafford Republican said during a news conference.” We don’t intend to do that.”
Since Howell formally introduced his legislation Friday, lawmakers, local officials and members of Gov. Tim Kaine’s administration have been dissecting the details and raising questions.
“We are concerned about what’s hiding in the weeds, and we discovered one real problem in the weeds,” said Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald Connolly when asked about the Dulles provision. “And how many more are there out there that we don’t even know about, or that, frankly, we’ll find unacceptable?”
Gov. Kaine and some legislators have expressed doubts over the Republican proposal to shift $250 million a year from Virginia’s general fund, which usually funds areas such as education, health care and public safety, into the transportation budget. Howell defended that portion of the plan Monday and warned against attempts to replace key portions of the financing plan with other revenue-raising options.
Staff writer William C. Flook and CapitalNews Services’ Gayland Hethcoat contributed to this article.
At a glance
Key provisions of the General Assembly Republicans’ plan to raise money for transportation:
» $2 billion in bonds.
» $250 million a year from Virginia’s general fund for transportation.
» Allowing Northern Virginia counties and cities to raise taxes and fees to generate about $400 million a year for projects in the region.
