When voters head to the polls next month, they’ll face stark choices on the issue of transportation. Alexandria candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates have dramatically different views about how improvements should be funded. Democrats favor raising the gas tax, although they differ on when that should happen. Republicans oppose raising the gas tax, preferring other potential sources of revenue such as reducing waste in state government, changing the funding formula of how transportation dollars are distributed from Richmond and privatizing Virginia’s state-owned liquor stores.

"This has become is one of the central questions in this election," said Isaac Wood, assistant director of communications for the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics. "Are voters going to vote for candidates that support raising taxes to fund improvements or are they going to vote for candidates who are vague about how they’ll pay for it?"

Candidates who support raising taxes face obvious perils, but they also stand to benefit. Groups such as the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance, for example, praise candidates who refuse to take pledges against raising taxes for transportation funding. The alliance, an advocacy group for congestion relief, estimates that the tax would need to be raised from 17.5 cents a gallon to 35 cents a gallon to have the same purchasing power as it did in 1987, the last time the tax was raised.

"No-tax pledges on transportation funding by candidates for public office are contrary to the best interests of the citizens of the commonwealth and future prosperity," members of the alliance concluded in a July resolution. "Fiscal and political realities dictate that the commonwealth’s transportation needs cannot be met without new, reliable revenues in the form of dedicated taxes and/or fees."

REPUBLICANS ON THE BALLOT in November say raising the gas tax would be a mistake in the current economic climate, and both favor selling the state-owned liquor stores to find new money for transportation. Sasha Gong, who is challenging Del. Charniele Herring (D-46), says she would work to change the funding formula in Richmond to make legislators increase funding for Northern Virginia. This line of argument has been used for many years by candidates and incumbents, even though no one has been able to persuade rural interests in Richmond from giving up their own transportation funding in exchange for sending more cash to Northern Virginia.

"If I get there, I’m going to scream murder," said Gong, adding that she wasn’t sure how much money would be available as a result of changing the funding formula. "Raising taxes will hurt the economy."

Vicki Vasques, who is challenging incumbent Del. David Englin (D-45), is also opposed to the idea of raising the gas tax to pay for transportation improvements. She says money can be found by eliminating waste, fraud and abuse in government. Vasques said that she was able to find savings during her time as a political appointee in the United States Department of Education, and she would do the same thing in Richmond by convening a panel of Democrats, Republicans and private-sector representatives to find spending reductions. Although she couldn’t mention any specific cuts, she estimates she would be able to find about $1.8 billion in savings.

"Most folks are having to do it at home," said Vasques. "This should not be difficult for us to do at the state level."

DEMOCRATS ON THE BALLOT in November support the idea of raising the gas tax, although they are divided on when that should happen. Both described the idea of selling the liquor stores to fund transportation projects with one-time revenue a gimmick. Englin says he supports raising some taxes, such as the gas tax, while lowering or eliminating other taxes, such as sales tax on food. While eliminating the sales tax on food would help those most in need, Englin says, raising the gas tax would force out-of-state drivers to help pay for infrastructure improvements to Virginia roads.

"It’s a user fee on the roads and a tax on carbon," said Englin, adding that he would support raising the gas tax 10 cents per gallon to 27.5 cents per gallon. "And a third of the revenue is coming from drivers out of state."

Herring says she supports the idea of raising the gas tax as a way to fund transportation improvements, but she was quick to add that it was not realistic to expect the General Assembly to approve such a measure until the economy improves. Once the economy improves and unemployment numbers go down, Herring said that she could support a one-cent increase if the new money could be earmarked for use in Northern Virginia. Meanwhile, she said the state should find new sources of revenue for transportation such as adding tolls Interstate 95 at Petersburg and Richmond.

"For many years, Interstate 95 charged tolls at Petersburg and Richmond before the practice was discontinued, and I would support reinstating this to create new money for transportation," said Herring, adding that education funding is at risk if new sources of revenue are not identified for transportation. "Although I’m in favor of raising the gas tax, I don’t think this is the best time to do it because people are hurting right now. When the economy improves, that will be something that should be considered."