CA: Amidst Price Spike, Southland Lawmaker Proposes 5-Cent Gas Tax Hike

NBC4.TV ^ | February 25, 2004

[calcowgirl]

Amidst Price Spike, Southland Lawmaker Proposes 5-Cent Gas Tax Hike
State's Transportation Infrastructure Facing Collapse, Oropeza Says

LOS ANGELES -- A Southland lawmaker Wednesday unveiled a bill to raise the gas tax by 5 cents per gallon, saying California's transportation infrastructure is facing collapse.

Assemblywoman Jenny Oropeza, D-Carson, chair of the Assembly Transportation Committee, said a gas-tax increase would help narrow a critical shortfall in transportation funding.

"Our highways are too congested, our roads are too bumpy and our governor's plans to divert billions in what voters said should be dedicated funding for state transportation projects are too short-sighted," Oropeza said, criticizing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's rollback of the so-called car tax.

Oropeza said the transportation panel over the next several weeks will "thoroughly review plans to shore up our highways. Stable transportation funding is the key to a strong economy."

[Viking2002]

Only from the mouth of a Kalifornia DemocRAT could this lunatic proposal come.

[calcowgirl]

ping

[facedown]

Really bad timing.

[H2dude]

you obviously dont drive on the roads here in So Cal.

[shaggy eel]

ping

[.38sw]

And Tom Torklakson from my district (can't remember the number, would have to look it up, but the district encompasses a lot of Contra Costa County) has proposed a 10 gas "fee". Yes, that's right, a fee. He has a ruling from legislative counsel that the .10/gallon qualifies as a user fee, not a general tax hike. Nice, huh?

[Viking2002]

Nor would you catch my maggot-ridden corpse there. Or anywhere else in your 'fine' state.

[TheSpottedOwl]

Oh, Jenny from the neighborhood. Maybe I should give her a polite phone call, considering the little twit lives right down the street from me.

[Faith-Hope]

I don't know about your gas prices but your diesel is twenty-one cents higher than fuel in Texas. Texas fuel was running about $1.49 at the end of last week while California was hitting $171.

[jocko12]

SORRY BUT NO WAY JOSE.

[FairOpinion]

But what have they been doing with all the money, including the gas tax, all these years?!

I know what, it went into the General Fund, from where it was squandered on everything, except the roads.

If they start spending the money they are already collecting from gas tax, on the roads, they can repair them all in short order.

[chachacha]

Pouring more money into Ca. is like pouring it down a Cesspool.

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

At the nearest ARCO station reg unleaded has gone from $1.59 to $2.13 in so little time it's making my head spin. That is really a HUGH increase.

[calcowgirl]

If they start spending the money they are already collecting from gas tax,
on the roads, they can repair them all in short order.

EXACTLY!

[Amerigomag]

Yup. That's just what California needs.

More gas taxes to fill the transportation fund so that Schwarzenegger and the legislature can use these "dedicated" revenues to pay the interest on the bond debt.

Actually this is probably the tax that the bond market will require to allow sale of the bonds. Schwarzenegger couldn't obviously inform the public about this requirement so he's simply disguising it as another necessary transportation expense.

[FairOpinion]

CA STATE gas taxes are the 3rd largest in the nation at 26. 2 cents/gal (state tax only -- Fed. tax is not included, see below)

Wisconsin: 31.1 (cents/gal)
Montan 27.2
California 26.2


On the other hand, Florida seems to do fine with only 16.3 cents/gal, and Alaska is lowest at 8 cents/gal.

http://www.californiagasprices.com/tax_info.asp


The Federal tax of 18.5 cents per gallon is additional, i.e. is not included in the above.

[NYCVirago]

"Our highways are too congested, our roads are too bumpy and our governor's plans to divert billions in what voters said should be dedicated funding for state transportation projects are too short-sighted," Oropeza said, criticizing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's rollback of the so-called car tax.

Wasn't the car tax only in effect a few months, yet rolling it back will cause all these billions to be "lost"? Give me a break.

[calcowgirl]

I just posted a much more comprehensive article from the SD Union Tribune

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1085667/posts

[philetus]

How bout a 5 cents per shot tax on Botox?