Richmond political leaders last night had tough questions about a proposed new regional authority that would have the power to raise taxes to meet the area's long-term transportation needs.

Mayor L. Douglas Wilder and several City Council members, at an unusual joint meeting to hear a presentation on the new authority, said they are concerned that the new authority seems to have little focus on mass transit.

They said they support more regional cooperation, and many said they like the idea of a regional authority in concept. But most wanted more details about the authority's powers and plans.

"There has not been the best relationship between the city and the counties," Wilder said, citing limited suburban bus service and an attempt in the legislature last year to reduce the city's role on the Richmond Metropolitan Authority, which runs some of the area's toll roads and bridges as well as The Diamond.

A bus system that goes beyond the city is the area's top regional transportation need, Council President William J. Pantele and Councilman E. Martin Jewell said.

As recommended by the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission, the authority would be able to raise funds from what the commission called "incremental increases" in a number of taxes or fees, possibly including the sales tax on vehicle fuel, initial vehicle registration fees, vehicle rental taxes, local vehicle registration fees, sales taxes on car repairs, vehicle inspection fees and the grantor's tax.

The authority would be governed by a board made up of representatives from Richmond and the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico, and possibly other area jurisdictions. The proposal was drafted by a task force of the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission.

"Ultimately, we're going to be looking at adding onto the tax burden of the people," said Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson. "The process has been really kind of closed door."

"I prefer not to call it tax," replied state Sen. John Watkins, R-Powhatan, a proponent of a regional authority. "I think it has to do with an enterprise system and the fees associated with it."

Some local government officials and business leaders have argued that an authority could be a way to pay for projects that are being delayed because of the state's financial squeeze.

Robert Crum, executive director of the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission, told those at the meeting last night that the authority could help fund 166 unfunded but necessary projects in the region. The total bill for them is about $2 billion, he said.

Watkins and Del. Franklin P. Hall, D-Richmond, had introduced bills for such an authority in the last legislative session, but the idea was set aside after local officials complained they had not been consulted and said they were not ready to move ahead with the idea.

If implemented, a regional authority could be opened to Powhatan, Goochland, New Kent and Charles City counties as well as the town of Ashland.
Contact David Ress at (804) 649-6051 or dress@timesdispatch.com.