Both houses of the General Assembly passed budget proposals Thursday which attempt to navigate the Commonwealth's troubled financial waters.
The two budget proposals now will be sent to committee to reconcile differences before the General Assembly session ends Feb. 22. A united proposal then will be sent to Gov. Mark R. Warner.
Much of the disparity between the two proposals centers on raises for state employees. Both plans provide for raises for at least some state employees, but the House plan excludes public school teachers.
Del. Lacey E. Putney, I-Bedford, said there is not enough money to allow for raises for teachers.
"I don't know where [the Senate] reached up in the sky," he said. "There's not a relationship between the amount of money available and the money needed to do a pay raise."
Sen. Janet D. Howell, D-Fairfax, defended the Senate's proposal.
"We realize that Virginia is underfunding public education and that much of the burden is on teachers," she said. "I imagine that this is going to be worked out in conference."
After two versions of a bill are passed by the House and Senate, representatives from both houses meet in a conference committee to work out a compromise between the two proposals.
Both the House and the Senate proposed a tuition increase cap for the state's in-state undergraduate students. The Senate's plan restricts tuition increases to 5 percent per year while the House plan allows colleges and universities to raise tuition by up to 9 percent a year.
Putney said the tuition cap was necessary to keep higher education within reach for Virginians.
"We need to maintain access and affordability at our institutions of higher learning," he said.
But Brian J. Moran, D-Fairfax, said colleges and universities should be allowed to maintain autonomy in setting fees.
"Colleges and universities have performed extremely well without our interference in tuition," he said. Previous attempts to cap tuition had led to sharp increases in fees when the caps were lifted, he added.
In a controversial move, the House proposal denies state funding to Planned Parenthood.
"I think the General Assembly feels that those folks have gone beyond the pale in promoting abortions," Putney said, defending the cut.
Moran said he felt the budget was an inappropriate forum for debates on morality.
"I strongly oppose legislating in that regard through the budget," he said. "I think women should be provided the opportunity to make an informed decision and to be counseled about all their options."
The House plan allows for the reinstatement of 12 Department of Motor Vehicle locations that Warner closed in October and the restoration of Wednesday service at all DMV offices.
The House plan intends to pay for the DMV reinstatement of services by increasing five-year driver's license fees from $15 to $20. The Senate proposal also calls for reopening the closed DMV locations, but does not provide for Wednesday hours.
Howell said she felt restoring Wednesday hours was not as pressing as other issues.
"It was a matter of setting priorities," she said. "We chose to put more resources into human services than the House did."
The House plan proposes a 5 percent increase in taxes on alcohol sales, a proposal that Moran criticized.
"We get accused of being tax and spend liberals when we talk about raising the cigarette tax," Moran said. "I think the fees are the most hypocritical components of the budget."
But Putney said the revenue from the increased alcohol tax is needed to provide mental health and substance abuse resources.
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