Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-03-14
Virginia Budget
Bill May Delay
Adjournment
Session Is Tied Up
Over Bid to Suspend
Tax Reduction Law
By Alex R. Preston
can

VII SIllk0 \lNA4CA GA &A0o(AAA0AJ WeAN'
tied up in legislative knots to-
night on three-quarter billion
dollar budget bill which threat
ened to delay its scheduled adj
journment at midnight.
The issue swirlled around an
amendment to suspend the Byrd
automatic tax reduction law this
year, making available about 81
million more for appropriations
under the so-called Boothe
amendment.
After 10 pm, the House was
debating a motion to instruct
its second set of conferees to hold
out for the 81 million. The in
struction would give negotiatorS
some leeway in revising a
formula for distributing school
funds to localities.
At tbs pm, the House had
voted SO to Sc to reject the re-
port of the first conference COM
mittee which had recommended
deletion of the Boothe amend
ment. Twenty minutes earlier.
the Senate voted % to II. to
adopt the conference report.
This means that the majority
of the House of Delegates would
suspend the Byrd Act this year
in order to use the 81 million
for additional aid for schools
and mental and physical health
facilities.
The two votes were the cli-
max of a 60-day session on an
issue which has overshadowed
nearly every action the Legisla-
ture has taken. The vote in the
Senate was much closer than
advocates of the Byrd Act repeal
had hoped for.
A move to recess the House at
6 pm. failed when Delegate
Amristead Boothe, of Alexandria,
chief patron of the disputed
amendment, won enough support
to forestall efforts by admin
stration forces.
One hundred hungry delegates
were kept in their seats for so
minutes longer until the vote
was taken and then a recess was
declared until $3.50 pm.
The fundamental issue of the
Byrd tax credit act has made
the session a tense one. Spec
tators were crowded into and be-
meath the galleries of both the
House and Senate to listen to
the debate.
Gov. Stanley has expressed
satisfaction with the Byrd law
as it is.
Surplus Revenues.
Another development high
lighted the day when the legis-
lature revised the tax reduction
law by guaranteeing the State a
portion of any surplus revenues
that may accumulate in future
years.
This occurred when the Sen
ate, by vote of SO to 2, ap-
proved the so-called Pendleton
Bill.
Until now taxpayers get all
Of the excess when revenues
exceed the Governors estimate
by five per cent or more. The
new law Of Delegate Nat Pen
dleton. of Wythe, says there
shall be no reduction on income
tax bills until the surplus
amounts to 10 per cent.
Even then the State would
retain five per cent.
Senator Harry F. Byrd jr.,
Of Winchester, said he had no
objection to the bill after the
House had passed it by a sub
stantial majority.
Two Members Dissent.
Tonight's action on the budget
was taken on a vote of whether
to accept or reject the report of
a 6-man conference committee.
The committee came back with
four members signing majority
report and two dissenting.
In addition to striking out the
Boothe amendment from the
House-approved budget, the Sen
ate also trimmed $500, 900 from
welfare and had adopted a new
formula for distributing State
aid to school funds.
The majority conference COM
mittee report recommended that
all of the Senate amendments
be adopted except in the matter
of welfare. The committee pro-
posed to lessen the 100000 cut
by $4,000 thus giving more
funds for such activities as fos-
ter home care for children.
Arlington and Fairfax would
fare differently under the school
distribution formula proposed in
the House and the one adopted
by the Senate and approved by
the conferees.
This is how areas close to
Washington would benefit, the
first figure representing the Sem
ate formula and the second the
House version:
Arlington, $15.700 and $7S.500
more than under existing law;
Fairfax. $204.356 and $167 500;
Alexandria, $7,925 and $39,625.
and Falls Church. $5,493 and
$8,647.
Passed by Senate.
The Senate also passed and
sent along to the Governor for
signing the House bill reducing
the number of State employees
holidays from Is to 9. The bill
was approved Is to Is after an
hour of debate in which Senator
Charles T. Moses of Appomattox
sought unsuccessfully to tack
on the birthdays of Thomas
Jefferson. Jefferson Davis and
Patrick Henry to the holiday
list.
The upper chamber completed
action on the administrations
bill to put more teeth into the
1947 right-to-work law by. &C
cepting amendments adopted by