Free Republic

(snip) "I think it's time for us to start looking at this seriously," said Supervisor Gerald W. Hyland (D-Mount Vernon), who has been lobbying behind the scenes for the tax since the board's retreat this past summer. He said a meals tax would bring in about as much as a property tax increase of 5 cents per $100 of assessed value and would be spread over a larger group of people. "The best thing to say to a room full of people is that even though we're in a tough time and a recession, you still go out to eat,"...

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine emerged from a closed-door meeting with his top economic advisers Monday, saying that to offset a projected budget shortfall next year, he may have to raise taxes -- a prospect quickly dismissed by Gov.-elect Robert F. McDonnell. After meeting with his Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates, Mr. Kaine said he won't take anything off the table when it comes to fulfilling his responsibility to protect the state's AAA bond rating, providing Virginians with necessary services and keeping the state competitive to attract business. The purpose of the meeting was to set revenue projections that will be...