Plan for ‘lockbox’ is backed

By Abe Nelson

Published: June 13, 2008

Legislators in the Virginia General Assembly will try once again to keep any money in the Transportation Trust Fund ... in the trust fund.

Del. G. Glenn Oder, R-Newport News, will present legislation during the General Assembly special session, which begins June 23, that would create a "constitutional lockbox" to protect the fund.

If the move is successful, the lockbox would ensure that money collected for transportation would be used for roads and such.

Local legislators, including Del. L. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Dale City, say they'll support Oder.

"I think that the public wants the assurance that the money that is coming in to transportation is not going to be siphoned off for other things," Lingamfelter said.

There have been several unsuccessful attempts over the years to create a lockbox that would earmark money in the same way lottery proceeds are dedicated to Virginia schools, Oder said in a recent press release.

"This constitutional amendment provides a guarantee to the citizens of Virginia that money dedicated to transportation will be spent on transportation. To prevent similar diversions and raids, we approved a constitutional amendment to protect funds for education raised by through the state lottery. We should protect transportation dol-lars as well," Oder said.

Lingamfelter agreed.

"I think the practice has been that people have tried to move this money around. I think that what Delegate Oder is trying to do—and I'm going to partner on him with this bill—is trying to establish some expectation that the public can be assured that the money that is in the Transportation Trust Fund is, by gosh, spent on roads."

Del. Jackson Miller, R-Manassas, also sides with Oder.

"I've always supported that, and I'll be signing on to it as a co-patron," Miller said.  "Probably the most urgent financing need we have, especially in Northern Virginia, is transportation fund-ing."

Oder said he has nearly 30 delegates who will support his efforts to amend the state constitution and create the lockbox.

Amendments to the Virginia Constitution must be passed twice in two separate sessions of the Virginia General Assembly and then be ratified by Virginia voters in order to become law.

Oder said similar resolutions in the past have enjoyed bipartisan support in the House of Delegates, only to fail in the Virginia Senate.

The fund has indeed been raided in the past, but the the money was always returned.

Oder's new resolution would allow for money to be transferred from the fund for other uses, but it would have to be repaid to the fund, with interest, within four years, Oder said.

Oder also said that transferring any money from the trust fund would also require a two-thirds vote by the General Assembly.

Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Manassas, has introduced similar legislation in the past. Del. Jeffrey M. Frederick, R-Woodbridge, has also supported similar proposals.

Keith Walker can be reached at 703-369-6751