Va. budget writers clash over taxes, pension reform and education Both the House and Senate want Virginia to send millions more dollars over the next two years than what Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) recommended to public schools, local governments and health care providers, including hospitals, nursing homes and free clinics. But the House stripped out a trio of fee increases proposed by McDonnell, while the Senate left them in and relied on a plan that would raise the gas tax to reflect inflation and pay for transportation maintenance. Meanwhile, the Senate restored a $500,000 cut to public broadcasting, but the House did not. And the Senate would require retailers with a physical presence in the state, including online retailer Amazon, to collect and pay the state sales tax. The House did not include that language. The House Appropriations and Senate Finance committees passed their versions of the budget, which goes into effect in July. The full chambers will get a chance to amend them before budget negotiators hash out their differences in time for the legislature's March 10 departure. After years of cuts due to the worst recession since the Great Depression, the two-year, $85 billion budget introduced by McDonnell in December would be the largest spending plan in Virginia history. All Democrats on the Senate committee voted against the Senate budget plan Sunday, even though the proposal was more amenable to Democrats than McDonnell's plan. But even without their support, the plan easily passed the heavily stacked committee in a 9-6 party line vote. It it will be another story in the full Senate, which is evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats. Republicans have pushed through an aggressive legislative agenda with help from Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R), who presides over the Senate and can break some tie votes. But he cannot vote on the budget. Sen. Janet D. Howell (D-Fairfax) said she objected in part because the budget only restores $42 million of a proposed $65 million cut to woo school employees in the competitive, expensive Northern Virginia market. The House did not restore any of the funds. "I don't feel like my priorities are being met," she said. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Walter A. Stosch (R-Henrico) said he was disappointed that Democrats did not back the plan. "We've done everything we can do to make sure it's a totally inclusive, bipartisan, nonpartisan process," he said. In the House, the committee voted unanimously for the House budget, as is customary. But Democrats vowed to fight against diverting $150 million from education and health care to transportation but said they were pleased Republicans took into account many of their concerns.