Posted on 12/08/2014 5:13:11 PM PST by Theoria
Gasoline prices are at their lowest level in four years. The price at the pump in many states is almost a full dollar cheaper than it was last spring.
So some politicians think this is a good time to raise gasoline taxes. Several states are tired of waiting for Congress to fix the federal highway trust fund, so they're considering raising gas taxes themselves to address their crumbling roads.
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is trying to sell that state's legislators — especially those in his own Republican party — on raising the state's motor fuel tax to fund long neglected infrastructure needs.
"Do you know of anyone who says we have good roads in this state? Nobody," said Snyder at a recent speaking engagement after touring a crumbling retaining wall along the Lodge Freeway in Detroit.
Snyder is calling on lawmakers to roughly double Michigan's gas tax over time, to raise more than $1 billion.
"The money I'm talking about is to get us to fair to good roads. They're not even going to be great roads, folks. We can't afford to have great roads in this state given what we need to invest," he continued.
Snyder is one of a growing number of Republicans across the country who see the need to spend big to improve infrastructure, and who are looking to increase gas taxes to pay for it.
"There's kind of been a switch that's been flipped," says Carl Davis, a senior analyst with the nonprofit Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
The roads haven’t been neglected, they’ve been targeted by 160,000# trucks for decades.
Throw them out!
When Republicans talk of raising taxes, they’re as bad as the Democrats.
With friends like them, we don’t need enemies.
Will the gas tax go back down when the price of oil goes back up? /snicker
SO now that the prive is going down a bit, they want to stick it to us AGAIN! These are repukelicants!
Vote out every single one of these turds ASAP! Cut government waste you pathetic morons! Me and my family have had enough!!!!!!!
Yeah, because we all know that they are such GOOD stewards with our money; we should give them more; we also know they’d never divert it to other pet projects, because they’re so honest. (/s)
cuz we all know that taxes are only used for fixing roads and bridges.
Fine, eliminate the federal highway fund and return the power of infrastructure to the states.
I was a republican from 1972. Then, during the Bush Jr admin, they controlled the congress and executive and showed their true colors. I’m no longer a republican. It’s why this years route was a bittersweet event for me. Kinda like being a jew and seeing Hitler defeated by Stalin. Big whoop.
I seem to remember that in Obama’s last campaign for pResident, all the man said was roads and bridges, roads and bridges, roads and bridges.
If someone asked Hi, Obama how you doin’ today? He would say roads and bridges.
How can there be a single unattended to roads and bridges anywhere in this country with Obama on the job?
HOW!?
Tax hikes. FR rinos need to remind me again how Boner and McTurtle are different..
If the current Gas tax was used as intended, the federal highway trust fund would not need fixing and our roads would be in a lot better shape.
The Fix, is to get the Feds out of our pockets and get our Tax money back out of the “General Fund” and back to the projects they were intended to be used for.
More taxes = more people on food stamps and not working!!!
So could welfare cuts, and firing about 100,000+ do-nothing federal bureaucrats, and rescinding their benefits.
Gimme about 8 hours with the federal budget, a black magic marker and a utility knife.
RINO Mitch Synder is shovel ready.
Every dime of the gas tax should be spent 100% on road infrastructure, new roads etc.
Many states raid those taxes for pet projects and the general fund. I know in Tennessee this is the case and Democrats are always angling to get.
Unfortunately for those asshat liberals it is law.
That’s what the current taxes were supposed to do. Quit putting $ in the General Fund for Snap cards!
I cannot see that NEED is directly relate to tax rates. It appears to me that it is a matter of how much politicians think the taxpayers will tolerate. The gas tax is a perfect example. Gas prices drop, good time to raise taxes, because the taxpayers are inured to the higher price and won’t scream too much. If NEED did relate to tax rates, we would all be paying 100% to pay off the $18 trillion debt or other politicians unfunded promises.
You know they’ll never spend it on infrastructure.
They nickel and dime us to death and their excuse is cuz we’re finally paying less for gas at the pump we should pay more in taxes.
They’re scum.
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