Governor Vetoes 2 Items In New 2012-14 Va Budget - WMDT 47 News - Delmarva's Choice

Governor Vetoes 2 Items In New 2012-14 Va Budget

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Gov. Bob McDonnell has signed into law the new $85 billion state budget schedule to take effect in less than three weeks but scratched two provisions of the two-year spending plan. The governor vetoed one amendment to the budget that would have prohibited him from using future surpluses for transportation maintenance, saying it conflicts with two bills enacted during this year's session giving him authority to do just that.

And, in a rare move, he marked another amendment as "unconstitutional," meaning the executive branch won't enforce it. The amendment requires a commission made up of legislators to approve disbursements from a new fund set up as a hedge against declining federal support as Congress copes with a $16 trillion debt. McDonnell calls it an unconstitutional legislative encroachment on executive power.

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