Posted on 02/27/2009 4:39:27 AM PST by Scanian
WASHINGTON -- Raise federal gasoline taxes to help pay for road projects?
Not during a recession, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has said.
Then how about moving toward a system that finances highway construction by charging motorists by the mile?
When LaHood suggested last week that be considered among other potential financing schemes, he got bushwhacked by the White House. "It is not and will not be the policy of the Obama administration," the president's press secretary said.
With the administration's position seemingly clear, a special commission created by Congress is nonetheless endorsing those two ideas.
Its report Thursday warns that if government fails to find a new way to raise money, "we will suffer grim consequences in the future: unimaginable levels of congestion, reduced safety, costlier goods and services, an eroded quality of life, and diminished economic competitiveness as a nation."
The National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission says the current 18.4 cents a gallon gas tax and 24.4 cents a gallon diesel tax are not raising enough money to keep pace with the cost of highway, bridge and transit projects. The commission proposes lifting the gasoline tax by 10 cents per gallon and the diesel tax by 15 cents per gallon, and adjusting both for inflation.
The report also says fuel taxes increasingly will become a less reliable way to pay for highway construction as people drive more fuel efficient vehicles and the number of electric and alternative fuel cars and trucks grows.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
This is political strategy. Who drives the least? City folk. Who votes for socialists? City folk.
Note to the Obama admin: Keep diggin’....
Only a fool would open the door to this garbage.
City folk take taxis. Will cab companies be exempted?
We’re being governed by a ship of fools.
Morons...
The cost of creating, funding and enforcing such a sham big bro agency would supercede any expected revenue.
It wouldn’t surprise me.
My favorite part: “The report also says fuel taxes increasingly will become a less reliable way to pay for highway construction as people drive more fuel efficient vehicles and the number of electric and alternative fuel cars and trucks grows.”
Tax the gas.
Tax the miles.
Pay a toll.
Tax on the car I bought.
Tax on the maintenance for it.
Tax when I sell it.
Drive my car to work everyday so I can earn a living - after tax of course!
“The bottles stand as empty, as they were filled before.
Time there was and plenty, but from that cup no more.
Though I could not caution all, I still might warn a few:
Dont lend your hand to raise no flag atop no ship of fools.”
Ship of Fools, Grateful Dead (Hunter/Garcia)
If they spent the money they collected through gas and transportation taxes on roads instead of putting it into the general fund maybe the roads wouldn’t be in bad shape.
I’m certain any NEW taxes on motorists will go only to fund transportation infrastructure projects. /s/
Note to the urbanites who take public transpo and think this tax won't effect them: Barry'll get to you. Count on it.
Did you check the expiration date on that statement?
If I am right that this is pitting city vs. suburbs, then I think they would exempt taxis. Hell, they might exempt truckers (Teamsters) too. They just want to screw the rich, greedy borgioise suburban/exurban honkeys.
Isn’t gas tax essentially levied by the mile now?
They seem to understand the term miles per gallon when they set efficiency standards.
Perhaps they are just figuring out that laws have consequences. Demand car makers have higher fuel efficiency, get what you asked for and realize to late your fuel tax revenue went down.
I have a better idea. Lets have a $5 per mile tax on subway tickets, $2 per mile tax on train tickets, and $10 per mile tax on cab fare!
Good Morning America welcome to more socialism
That has long been my assumption on what contributes libs disdain of SUV’s, large homes, land rights, ignorance of farming, contempt for so-called fly-over states, rejection of smaller local governments, etc. Such things are not their life experience and as such don’t matter to them.
Note to taxpayers and in the immortal words of one of our Founding Fathers....
We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.
Benjamin Franklin
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