The Roanoke Times Send This Story To A Friend. They instead want a comprehensive spending package that would include a change in the state's schedule for phasing out the personal property tax on vehicles. So House members hardly radiated optimism Friday as they hurriedly voted on nine bills designed to help the people and programs most affected by the General Assembly 's failure to agree on a revised budget. The House has all but abandoned efforts to pass a comprehensive budget bill because of an unresolved dispute with the Senate over the size of the car tax cut. The Senate will begin work on the House bills Monday, when lawmakers return to Richmond to continue their week long budget session.
Senators also plan to continue work on their own budget package.
The budget session is scheduled to end May 11. The bill would include funds for construction of a dairy science facility at Virginia Tech and renovations to Radford University 's Walker Hall. The measure met with some opposition from Democrats, who questioned the methods used to secure money for the projects. Republicans proposed using savings from a retroactive reduction in the rate the state pays into the Virginia Retirement System, a strategy similar to one Gilmore used in an unsuccessful effort to fund salary increases. Members of the Senate Finance Committee said last week they would squelch any attempt to impose a retroactive rate reduction.