Richmond Times-Dispatch: Impact fee bill delayed until next year:
Lawmakers have delayed until next year a proposal to drastically change the way developers help pay for municipal services required by new development.
The House Rules Committee agreed Thursday to postpone the bill to allow further negotiations between developers and local governments. Both sides support the delay.
Currently, developers offer cash and land for roads, schools or parks. Those commitments, called proffers, are usually negotiated with local governments and can be as much as $47,000 for each new house. Critics say the proffers are making houses unaffordable.
Sen. John Watkins of Powhatan County proposed replacing proffers with impact fees, which would be capped at a designated level. Some localities are concerned that impact fees would bring in less money and limit their ability to pay for new services.
Why was this delayed? Not Larry Sabato has a pretty good explanation of why: How the Speaker gives Chris Jankowski VIP Treatment