Posted on 07/15/2019 2:08:13 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Taxpayers from all 50 states pay into the Highway Trust Fund when they fill their tanks with gas or diesel fuel.
That sends billions of dollars a year to Washington, which then cuts checks to state governments in the form of infrastructure grants overseen by federal bureaucrats.
It’s hard to tell just what shuffling so much money from one level of government to another is supposed to accomplish. In point of fact, the system creates many speed bumps that prevent our highway system from delivering the value it ought to.
A Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing on Wednesday provided few reasons to justify continuing down the current road.
The subject of the hearing was legislation to reauthorize the federal surface transportation system, which the committee chairman, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., is hoping to unveil before Congress’ August recess.
Senators and the panelists acknowledged several problems with the Highway Trust Fund.
First, the fund is running an annual deficit and will be depleted in the next two years, which will require bringing taxes and spending into alignment. That would be an improvement from the 2015 highway bill, which added $70 billion to the national debt by transferring money from the general fund.
Second, the prospect of simply extending the current law for short periods would be counterproductive. As Barrasso noted, that would “undermine our states’ ability to plan” infrastructure projects.
While that statement is accurate, it also points to one of the problems with today’s bloated federal government; namely, that states have become dependent on Washington for the provision of many basic services.
Considering the regularity of gridlock in Congress, expanding the federal government’s role seems foolhardy. If we’re counting on the House and the Senate for road maintenance, that could lead to a bumpy ride for everyone.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailysignal.com ...
Simple remedy, it says “highway Trust Fund”, not high speed rail, bike paths, urban railroads etc.
I, for one, am delighted that the US pushed I-80 across southern Wyoming back in the day.
I believe that is a highway. Seems appropriate for a highway trust fund to pay for it.
If we only used proportional representation, we soon wouldn't be able to drive coast to coast. All the highway money would stay on the coasts.
Right you are. This country never would have expanded west of the Appalachians without a national system of roads.
This right here. The federal gas tax should ONLY be used for the interstate highway system. That’s it. State highways, county highways and bridges should be paid for by the states themselves.
There are a lot of US highways [non-interstate] out west that need support to continue to traverse the wide open spaces where the locals couldn’t possibly provide 100% of funding.
Iowans, for example, should be forced to pay for state roads within that particular state?
Look up US 85 for instance.
You’ll never get through to all of the road socialists on this site.
That’s still not an interstate, as defined by the Interstate Highway System.
It’s a US highway that gets Federal Funding.
For the same reasons as the Interstate System does.
And the US Highways have been funded by the Feds starting well before the Interstates were built.
US highways go places where traffic volumes don’t support a 4 lane, but are still necessary to connect the States, especially out West.
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