“There are some who see a fee increase, irrespective of the purpose, as a tax increase,” Huggins said. “There are some who are reluctant to support it for that reason. ... Nobody disagrees with the magnitude of the problem.”

That would be enough to fill vacancies, hire more troopers, and address the compression and starting salary problems, Carrico said.

However, even if that passes what has proved to be a reluctant General Assembly, state police and other employees have a “right-now” problem, Carrico said, namely the raises that were to go into effect in December.

Huggins, who was superintendent from 1994 to 2000, said what his membership is most eager to see is that the legislature, which reconvenes in January, comes up with a long-term solution, even if it takes several years to implement, not a “Band-Aid.” That would at least give troopers something to plan their lives around.

“I was dealing with many of these issues 20 years ago. These are not problems that have just come up overnight,” he said. “We’re not going to get out of this problem in a year. It’s going to take some time. What we’re asking is to put a plan in place.”