Posted on 11/15/2006 3:37:41 AM PST by Dane
Gas tax to cover roads, rails? By MARTHA RAFFAELE Associated Press Writer Article Launched:11/14/2006 09:43:19 AM EST
HARRISBURG — Getting a driver's license, registering a vehicle, and filling the gas tank would all become more expensive for Pennsylvania motorists under a proposal released Monday traise roughly $1.7 billion for improving the state's highways and bridges and funding its cash-strapped mass-transit systems.
A transportation study commission is calling for increasing the 19-cents-per-gallon oil franchise tax by 11.5 cents per gallon and raising various motor vehicle registration and license fees tgenerate an additional $900 million for highway and bridge projects. The oil franchise tax is levied on the wholesale price of gasoline and passed on tconsumers as part of the gasoline tax.
The report alscalls for raising $65 million for bridges and highways owned by counties and municipalities through an additional one-cent increase in the oil franchise tax.
Transportation Secretary Allen D. Biehler said at a news conference Monday that the commission appointed by Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell struggled with the task of setting a price tag for new transportation funding and determining how tpay for it.
"It is a tough, a very tough, issue for all of us, but I don't know of any other place tstart, except (to) start from a point of well-founded pieces of information that would help people understand the circumstances," Biehler said.
The commission is alsrecommending a combination of state and local taxes traise an additional $760 million for mass transit.
The state would raise its $576 million share by raising the 1 percent realty-transfer tax by less than one percentage point; counties and municipalities would raise their shares by imposing local sales, earned-income or realty-transfer taxes.
The proposed oil franchise tax and motor-vehicle fee increases would cost $7 a month combined for the average driver, and the proposed realty-transfer tax increase would add about $5 a month ta 30-year, $150,000 mortgage for homeowners, Biehler said.
Additionally, the commission said spending on highways and mass transit could be reduced by $180 million through steps such as using public-private partnerships for highway construction and financing, streamlining the highway construction process, and restructuring mass-transit routes.
It was not immediately clear Monday whether Rendell or state lawmakers would endorse the report's recommendations. Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardsaid the governor will review the report and try trespond tit quickly.
"The governor has treview both the commission's perspective on the problem, consider that, and then consider their recommended response," Ardsaid. "We can't just focus on what the response is."
Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Roger A. Madigan applauded the commission's recommendations for cost savings in a memtfellow senators and senators-elect. But he said lawmakers would have tdeliberate carefully over the recommended tax and fee increases.
"We must fully explore how we can improve our transportation network without increasing revenues before we seek tincrease the financial burden upon our citizens," said Madigan, R-Bradford.
"A thoughtful debate should occur over the next six months taid us in developing the best possible proposal tbalance these issues with action in tandem with the adoption of the É 2007-2008 budget."
Rendell established the commission in February 2005 after he and the Legislature could not agree on financial support for transit agencies facing cash shortages. At the same time, Rendell alsrerouted some of Pennsylvania's federal highway funding tkeep transit agencies afloat until 2007.
Without a public-funding increase, the state's twlargest mass transit systems, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of Allegheny County, will have taddress a combined $81 million deficit in the first six months of 2007.
WHAT'S SUGGESTED:
Key recommendations of the Transportation Funding and Reform Commission:
HIGHWAYS AND BRIDGES:
Raise $900 million for state-owned highways and bridges by increasing oil franchise tax on the wholesale price of gasoline by 11.5 cents per gallon and increasing motor vehicle registration and license fees.
Raise $65 million for highways and bridges owned by counties and municipalities with one-cent increase in oil franchise tax.
Save $120 million through measures such as streamlined project planning, better maintenance and preservation, and linking land use and transportation.
MASS TRANSIT:
Raise $760 million for mass transit, with 75 percent from the state and 25 percent from counties and municipalities.
Increase realty-transfer tax from 1 percent t1.89 percent traise state's share.
Enable counties and municipalities traise their share through a 0.25 percent local sales tax, 0.20 percent earned-income tax, or 0.5 percent realty-transfer tax.
Replace $589 million in current mass-transit revenue sources with existing revenue from state sales or personal-income tax.
Save $60 million through measures such as restructuring or eliminating routes with low ridership, reducing labor and management costs, encouraging the use of private contractors and revising fare policies.
Ease mass-transit tax burden by exploring public-private partnerships and finance capital projects through borrowing.
Distribute subsidies for operating costs based on formula using passengers and vehicle hours.
Give state transportation officials authority treview transit-agency performance.
Source: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
Suckers.
Couldn't happen to a better bunch of tax-loving voters. The state would make a fortune on a Stupidity Tax for PA.
After rejecting Lynn Swann and bouncing Santorum, this is fitting justice for a state that is trying every day to become just like New Jersey. The pols in PA like to think of ways to tax anything that stays still for more than a minute. Here are a few suggestions that they havent done yet: Lawn mower licenses, golf cart registration and licences, horse registration, breathing. I moved out of this declining blue state years ago and feel bad for many friends I left behind to suffer. Almost what people experience who move out of S. Africa.
PA already has a stupidity tax, it's called the lottery
Did you happen to catch Rangel on Hannity this afternoon? Sean asked him to tule out tax increases and Charlie double talked. Finally he said he was FOR tax cuts for the middle class. He defined that as those earning 70k-200k.
He went on to - relunctantly - agree that the top 5% of wage earners shoulder around 65% of the tax burden.
That left me to wonder...if he isn't going to raise taxes on "the rich" and lower taxes for the "middle class"...just who is he going to tax? Sadly Sean didn't follow up.
ROTFLMAO!
prisoner6
"Taxman", George Harrison, 1966.
I hope these people aren't looking for sympathy.
(stupid tax...) Now the new and improved "Stupid Tax"...casino gambling!!!! The answer to all tax troubles.(barf!!!) Looking for property in Ohio or West Virginia..now!!
"All I can say about the voters of Penn. ~ Suckers"
Didn't you mean to say the 'principled conservatives' of Penn?
Yeah, funny how to Fast Eddie's commission waited until after the elction to drop this big tax/fee increase bomb on Pennsylvania.
Fortunately, the Republicans here in the Commwealth narrowly control both the Senate and General Assembly, and I doubt if this highway robbery plan will go anywhere, especially since the politicians in power know that Pennsylvanians carefully watch how they vote on any and all tax matters.
And yes, I agree that the Pennsylvanians who re-elected Rendell (from the Philadelphia-Scranton-Pittsburg "iron triangle") are real suckers, while us the rest of us who voted for Swann and Santorum are still crying out in the wilderness.
Here is a helper; New York States requires licenses for bicycles.
"the proposed realty-transfer tax increase would add about $5 a month ta 30-year, $150,000 mortgage for homeowners, Biehler said."
Let's see 30 years x 12 months = 360 months x $5/month = $1,800 in new taxes on a $150,000 mortgage.
When Santorum got bounced, and Eddie G(ambino) Rendell got re-elected by what, a 75-25 margin? I decided to start making my exit from the Democratic Republic of Pennsylvania.
I warned everybody I knew that right after the election, they would be breaking out the rakes and shovels and wheelbarrows and carting away the money. His second term is going to make the Milty Shapp regime look like Boy Scouts.
Quoth G. Gordon Liddy - "Ye Suckerzzzzz!"
And you can't touch even a townhouse in our area of SE Pa for $200K. These are some whopping tax and fee increases.
This just burns me up. Since Fast Eddie took office we've endured an income tax increase, substantial increases in turnpike tolls, the addition of casino gambling, and now these proposed increases. There is just no end in sight . . .
Funny how this report came out a week after the election. It's frustrating knowing that your vote never makes a difference.
AMAZING!!!
Here we are a week out from an election and new taxes are suggested from our RE-ELECTED DEMOCRAT governor!! Surprise! Surprise!
What's especially amazing about this is our local Daily Rag endorsed him in glowing terms and today they have an editorial about these new taxes. They aren't too thrilled. I guess I can now call the editor a disgruntled democrat.
(OOHHH that feels so good!)
Not so fast with the control of the house. The recount ongoing in Chester County Pa. will determine the outcome of control of the Pa House of Rep. One GOP candidate won by 19 votes. Aftwer the election 256 absentee ballots were discovered at 8 polls. They had not been counted and provisionals were not all counted either. The race is very much up in the air. Ed Rendell is watching this count. The activity of moveon.org and ACORN may play a part. They are looking at every person and address closely. Rumors of a recently sentenced pedophile voting from jail are strong. How would a felon get an absentee ballot?
"Looking for property in Ohio or West Virginia..now!!"
After seeing what happened in Ohio, you are looking for property there?
Good grief! I had not heard about that! The Chester County Election officials need to be pilloried for this!
The elder Casey pulled the same cr@p when he got re-elected as governor some years back. His lame-republican opponent that year kept warning about a fiscal crisis. Casey denied it, then admitted it about 2 days after his re-election. His solution was to jamm the Commonwealth with a whole raft of new taxes.
My point is that things never change. The Republicans run weak candidates that the Media ignores, and the Democrats raise our taxes after promising not to (or saying nothing). SSDD.
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