Lawmaker Wants Increase In Vehicle Licenses

You€™ll pay more in vehicle license fees if one top lawmaker in Sacramento gets his way.

The state Assembly€™s top Democrat says he€™s going to ask lawmakers to raise the state€™s vehicle license fee in addition to making some of the midyear budget cuts proposed last month by Governor Gray Davis. Speaker Herb Wesson and many other Democrats have said the midyear cuts will have too much of an impact on schools and health care for the poor. Democrats also say any cuts should be combined with tax increases, but some Republicans are saying the Governor has inflated the projected shortfall to justify raising taxes.

Meanwhile, Governor Davis has launched a public relations tour of sorts for his budget plan that attempts to fill an estimated $34.6 billion deficit.