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By MICHAEL MARTZ
Arundel Newspapers Staff Writer
RICIJMOND — Political gamesmanship continued Tuesday afternoon for a controversial mobile home bill that barely survived in Senate committee for the second straight week.
The Senate Committee on Local Government, which almost killed the bill a week earlier, voted to kill it the second time, but then agreed to reconsider the measure so one of its sponsors can submit a substitute motion.
The committee will consider the matter again Tuesday, Feb. 4.
It voted 7-6 to kill the bill, but Sen. Kevin G. Miller (R-Harrisonburg), who represents Rappahannock and part of Fauquier, convinced one of the measure’s opponents, Sen. John W. Russell (R-Fairfax), to move its reconsideration.
“So it’s alive, but I don’t know how well,” Sen. Miller said.
The bill, whi<;h died in the Senate Finance Committee last year, would prevent local zoning ordinances from prohibiting “double-wide” mobile homes in agricultural zoning districts.
Like some other counties, Fauquier limits the placement of mobile homes. Those limitations would be affected if the legislation were adopted.
Sen. Miller said he plans to introduce an amendment to the bill that may make it “more palatable” to committee members by specifying that the' double-wide houses are not mobile homes. Althbugh they fall under that definition, the houses are put on permanent foundations after they are hauled to the house sites.
The vote to kill the bill was the second one in a week. The first vote, on Jan. 21, failed, 7-7.
It might have escaped from committee then, but Sen. Charles L. Waddell (D-Loudoun), who opposed it, successfully challenged a proxy vote cast for Sen. W. Onico Barker (D-Danville), who favored the bill.
Sen. Barker was present for the second vote, so the measure could have passed if the votes stayed the same. But they didn’t.
Although supporters of the bill persuaded freshman Sen. Benjamin J. Lambert III (DRichmond) to change his vote in favor of it, they lost three others.
94.9%