Posted on 02/20/2009 4:11:38 AM PST by Man50D
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says he wants to consider taxing motorists based on how many miles they drive rather than how much gasoline they burn -- an idea that has angered drivers in some states where it has been proposed.
Gasoline taxes that for nearly half a century have paid for the federal share of highway and bridge construction can no longer be counted on to raise enough money to keep the nation's transportation system moving, LaHood said in an interview with The Associated Press.
"We should look at the vehicular miles program where people are actually clocked on the number of miles that they traveled," the former Illinois Republican lawmaker said.
Most transportation experts see a vehicle miles traveled tax as a long-term solution, but Congress is being urged to move in that direction now by funding pilot projects.
The idea also is gaining ground in several states. Governors in Idaho and Rhode Island are talking about such programs, and a North Carolina panel suggested in December the state start charging motorists a quarter-cent for every mile as a substitute for the gas tax.
A tentative plan in Massachusetts to use GPS chips in vehicles to charge motorists by the mile has drawn complaints from drivers who say it's an Orwellian intrusion by government into the lives of citizens. Other motorists say it eliminates an incentive to drive more fuel-efficient cars since gas guzzlers will be taxed at the same rate as fuel sippers.
Besides a VMT tax, more tolls for highways and bridges and more government partnerships with business to finance transportation projects are other funding options, LaHood, one of two Republicans in President Barack Obama's Cabinet, said in the interview Thursday.
"What I see this administration doing is this -- thinking outside the box on how we fund our infrastructure in America," he said.
LaHood said he firmly opposes raising the federal gasoline tax in the current recession.
The program that funds the federal share of highway projects is part of a surface transportation law that expires Sept. 30. Last fall, Congress made an emergency infusion of $8 billion to make up for a shortfall between gas tax revenues and the amount of money promised to states for their projects. The gap between money raised by the gas tax and the cost of maintaining the nation's highway system and expanding it to accommodate population growth is forecast to continue to widen.
Among the reasons for the gap is a switch to more fuel-efficient cars and a decrease in driving that many transportation experts believe is related to the economic downturn. Electric cars and alternative-fuel vehicles that don't use gasoline are expected to start penetrating the market in greater numbers.
"One of the things I think everyone agrees with around reauthorization of the highway bill is that the highway trust fund is an antiquated system for funding our highways," LaHood said. "It did work to build the interstate system and it was very effective, there's no question about that. But the big question now is, We're into the 21st century and how are we going to take care of our infrastructure needs ... with a highway trust fund that had to be plused up by $8 billion by Congress last year?"
A blue-ribbon national transportation commission is expected to release a report next week recommending a VMT.
The system would require all cars and trucks be equipped with global satellite positioning technology, a transponder, a clock and other equipment to record how many miles a vehicle was driven, whether it was driven on highways or secondary roads, and even whether it was driven during peak traffic periods or off-peak hours.
The device would tally how much tax motorists owed depending upon their road use. Motorists would pay the amount owed when it was downloaded, probably at gas stations at first, but an alternative eventually would be needed.
Rob Atkinson, president of the National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission, the agency that is developing future transportation funding options, said moving to a national VMT would take about a decade.
Privacy concerns are based more on perception than any actual risk, Atkinson said. The satellite information would be beamed one way to the car and driving information would be contained within the device on the car, with the amount of the tax due the only information that's downloaded, he said.
The devices also could be programmed to charge higher rates to vehicles that are heavier, like trucks that put more stress on roadways, Atkinson said.
Unfortunately, we live under a system of who gets the most votes gets to make the rules.
For the record, I did not vote for the bastard either. Another thing that probably means nothing but most of the vehicles I see with “obama-Biden” ,”obama 08” ,”Change” are occupied by White people.
Hey, all you O supporters, how's that "change" workin' for you now? Look what you've done to the rest of us!
Time to disconnect the odometer then.
Like your idea, 6SJ7, with one small modification, tar and feathers for the amateur crooks, the gallows for the old pros!
“LaHood said he firmly opposes raising the federal gasoline tax in the current recession. “
Yeah, don’t tax the people.
But new fees? That’s OK in a recession.
D’OH
Well, the lefties already have cameras at pretty much every interesection in the city (Houston). Between those and cell phones and GPS, they’ll know where each of us goes and when. And probably why. They know what purchases we make on credit cards, thanks to Chris Dodd. And then there’s internet tracking (Einstein - http://www.akdart.com/carniv.html).
Big Brother just shot up about 3’ over our heads in just the last 3+ months.
Governors in Idaho and Rhode Island...RI is about as big as DFW—another tax to punish rural areas like Texas...there comes a point where we are not going to take this crap anymore.
Any scheme that involves GPS devices to record miles driven will destroy privacy of travel and must be opposed by every means necessary.
Wow - these Dems are bent on hurting the poor - the very folks they claim to champion. Here in my state, he Gov wants to close the deficit by charging docs for kid vaccines. And, these libs want to tax booze and fatty foods. Who do they think this stuff hits hardest?
It is not going to be based on the odometer. The info will be on flash memory in a “black box” on your car.
If you car doesn’t have the black box, it will be illegal to drive and need to have it retro-fitted.
You’ll need to find someone to hack the d@nm thing.
Here in Washington we pay 54.4 cents per gal in taxes, 18.4 cents of that is Federal, the rest is State taxes. If the Feds replace the 18.4 with a per mile tax, I am still paying 36 cents per gal for State taxes, and that is still higher than what several other states pay now, and our good ole governor will fill that new void with additional state taxes, so it will be back up into the 50s soon enough.
Here is a breakdown of the current gas taxes by state.
http://www.washingtongasprices.com/tax_info.aspx
use GPS chips in vehicles to charge motorists by the mile...
Also, don’t be surprised if they use the GPS chips to send you a bill for speeding......
This will definately hurt the economy even more...I won’t go out shopping as often, or drive into town for dinner as often. Hanging around home avoiding taxes sounds better.
There goes any incentive to buy a fuel-efficient vehicle.
you have a autopass turnpike gps style device.
those little devices that auto deduct your toll for you.
Oh, so THIS is how they plan to limit travel. How Nazi-ish.
Who is funding all this gps controlling stuff? taxpayers?
“A tin foil hat for the GPS antenna should take care of that.”
I’m sure the GPS would be pinged periodically to verify signal integrity. TF blockage would result in an immediate visit from compliance officers.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.