2 US Senators Propose 12-Cent Gas Tax Increase

An anonymous reader writes There are several proposals on the table to stave off the impending insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund (which pays for transit, biking, and walking projects too) in two months. Just now, two senators teamed up to announce one that might actually have a chance. Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) have proposed increasing the gas tax by 12 cents a gallon over two years. The federal gas tax currently stands at 18.4 cents a gallon, where it has been set since 1993, when gas cost $1.16 a gallon.

Comments

Re:Good!

[rogoshen1]

We need more regressive taxes in this country! Screw the poor people!

(Yes, consumption taxes on essential goods with demand tending towards inelasticity are regressive)

(my tinfoil hat tells me Corker likes this due to Toyota manufacturing in his state, and the increase in hybrid sales due to gas price hikes.)

Re:Good!

[Maxo-Texas]

I think the tax needs to be a percentage tax.

I agree that our infrastructure is suffering due to lack of funding.
Adjusted for inflation, this tax has lost almost 75% of the purchasing power it had 20 years ago.

Re:Good!

[Maxo-Texas]

http://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/a...

1993 Average income: 23,132.67
2013 Average income: 44,321.67

Roads and Bridges, like firefighters and law enforcement offers, are a legitimate function of government. Funding for the roads has been cut in half by inflation and the infrastructure is becoming dangerous. Especially bridges.

If the tax had been set at 18%- then it would have scaled with gasoline prices. But with the increasing share of hybrids, much higher mileage of gasoline cars (33mpg vs 28mpg), many more trucks used for shipping (70% more in 2007 than in 1997) (roughly 15 million today vs 4 million in 1993), and now purely electric cars the tax needs to be changed to reflect today's reality.

What we really need is to remove the gasoline tax and replace it with a mileage tax.

I read a lot of 1850's newspapers and it's funny because with the civil war approaching, the voters and legislators then seemed more rational than our voters and legislators today.

You *can't* *have* the roads for *free*.
It *costs* money to build and maintain the road system.

Grow up.

Re:Good!

[Luthair]

While we're on analogies - what you're saying is you can live on a wage from 20-years ago today and ignore the inflation that has happened in that period?

Remember that this is a fixed rate set 21-years ago, while the costs associated maintaining infrastructures have gone up. Further, cars have also became substantially more fuel efficient reducing the per km value of the tax as well without corresponding reduction of wear or demand on the infrastructure.

Re:Good!

[darkwing_bmf]

Our petrol costs $NZ2.20/L. It's been over $2 for years now.

Translation:
Our gasoline costs $7.24/gallon. It's been over $6.50 for years now.

Re:Good!

[Alex Zepeda]

And you'd be wrong.

https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/motor...

The revenue from the collected Federal fuel taxes are deposited into the Highway Trust Fund, which has several accounts. Though the percentages vary depending on the fuel type, the majority (approximately 83 to 87%) is deposited into the Highway Account, to be used on road construction and maintenance. An additional amount (approximately 11 to 15%) goes to the Mass Transit Account, and for many fuels, 0.1 cents per gallon goes to the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund.