But it’s not just a political challenge (I make sure and get yelled at from both sides–it keeps me humble.) This is more of a constitutional responsibility challenge.

The problem with this NVTA thing is that there is still no help coming back from Richmond. If there was SOMETHING in the form of BPOL tax relief or property tax relief, then it wouldn’t be as big of a deal.

But as it is, with so many of our tax dollars going down south, we have to fork out MORE in order to get done what Richmond is supposed to be doing for us anyway–meanwhile local taxes are going up as well.

I can certainly understand the Republican stance from other parts of the state not to raise taxes. When you have a “budget crisis” and a year or so later have a billion dollar SURPLUS, you should be VERY CAUTIOUS about raising taxes.

But the roads have to be built and the money is going to come from Northern Virginia, either way. In a way, I’d rather it stay up here than go down there and never make it’s way back up (which–to answer your question–is what happened to that money, and what always happens to that money).

My question is…If Northern Virginia pays DOUBLE per capita in taxes to Richmond, but 70% of our County taxes are going to local Public Schools, what exactly does the State Government do for us locally if not Transportation?

It’s really a travesty, and it makes me wonder if it would better to go back to a classic City State model like the Ancient Greeks. At least we would have only one entity to pay taxes to. Currently it’s a long list:

* HOA fees
* Town Taxes
* County Taxes
* NVTA Taxes (**NEW!!**)
* State Taxes
* Federal Taxes

Sooner or later we’ll add:

* UN dues
* Solar System Taxes
* Milky Way Galaxy Taxes
* Intergalactic Local Group dues
* Virgo SuperCluster assessment

How many Governments does it take to screw in a lightbulb?

My point is, if we’re going to take responsibility for our roads as a region, fine…I’m all for that. But it should mean, then, that we will be paying less State taxes, and that’s not the case. It’s classic wealth distribution–Northern Virginia takes care of itself, and continues to fund the rest of the state.