The Virginia General Assembly passed Senate and House of Delegates redistricting plans yesterday, which will now go to Gov. James S. Gilmore III (R) for approval.
The bill calls for dividing the state into 100 districts for the House and 40 districts for the Senate.
Both houses are in recess awaiting the governor's next move on the bill. According to media reports, there are worries that Gilmore will veto or amend the plans to retaliate against the Senate for not approving his 70 percent car tax reduction.
Although Gimore has said he will not veto the redistricting plans, he has not guaranteed whether or not he will make amendments, which would require that the bill be sent back to both the House and Senate for approval.
Although the General Assembly approved the redistricting bills, some Democrats are not in favor of it.
Sen. Emily Couric (D-Albemarle) said she sees major problems in the proposal, including distributing minorities to different districts in attmempts to prevent Democrats from having a stronghold in a specific area of the Commonwealth.
There is a dilution of minorities, and many districts are not continuous and separated by water, Couric said.
Del. Mitch Van Yahres (D-Charlottesville) said he sees many problems with the portions of the redistricting plan that involves the Charlottesville area.
"The plan chops Albemarle into four districts" instead of the present two districts, Van Yahres said.
But Republicans disagree with Democrats' criticisms.
"I think they have a good, strong plan," House Speaker S. Vance Wilkins Jr. (R-Amherst) said.
The governor has not made a decision on whether or not he will approve, amend or veto the redistricting plan, Gilmore's assistant press secretary Yooree Oh said.
The Senate also has begun trying to solve the budget crisis that has gripped the state over the past seven weeks.
The Senate recently passed a resolution that would allow the General Assembly to look at the budget during the redistricting session.
However, Wilkins would not allow Senate Rules Committee Chairman Malfourd W. Trumbo (R-Botetourt) to propose the resolution before the floor of the House.
"The Senate has been trying to work out a compromise, but the governor won't," Couric said.
Although Couric supports the full repeal of the car tax, the Senate Finance Committee suggests a more gradual cutback of the car tax so programs will not suffer, she said. The governor has proposed a 70 percent car-tax cut.
The House might consider the budget if it sees progress toward a resolution, Wilkins said.
Van Yahres said he sees the house speaker as being stubborn on the budget issue for not allowing the rules committee to take up the issue.
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