Posted on 10/15/2008 9:55:22 AM PDT by BGHater
What you should grasp here...is that folks have cut back on usage (fewer trips) and started to move toward 4-cylinder vehicles with better mileage...along with hybrid usage. If you look at state gas tax revenue...you will find that its less that they are making today. It will continue in this trend.
It would be the same if half of you guys who smoke...began to quit or cut back drastically. The state would make a good bit less on smoking tax revenues.
Bottom line...they have make up for your less gas usage or your less smoking...so naturally, this makes perfect sense for the state revenue guys. The problem with this...is that folks would simply find ways to exempt various personal vehicles (volunteer fire department members would be exempted, mayors and EMT guys, etc).
The negative of this is that folks from out of states who pass through...and they aren’t going find a method go hand in hand with “guests”. This might sound good on paper....but it can’t work unless all fifty states go along, and they won’t.
If you ever leave the state you'll need to pay a different rate for that state's mileage tax.
Thus the necessity of the gubmint tracking your every move with GPS so they only charge you for miles driven in your state.
And, yes, congratulations, your gps data indicates you've been speeding and have some fines to pay!
And if you get pulled over and don't have your GPS device attached, well, good luck going to court to get your license - and car! - back.
Also, the way they're testing the system, you pay less taxes if you have a fuel efficient car and drive fewer miles. Well, that runs into the exact same revenue "problem" they're having with gas taxes! It's just easier to justify a mileage tax you pay once a year (they'll probably be nice enough to withhold money from your paycheck!) than to see the federal and state gas taxes posted on the pump every time you spend $40 to fill up.
ping
And the dirty secret for North Carolina is that the gas tax is tied to the wholesale price of gasoline, which means that their revenue stream is doing just fine, thank them very much (but of course they're STILL outspending that!!). We already have the highest state gas tax I'm aware of south of New England and east of California.
North Carolina has the most expensive gas in the Lower 48 States at the moment.
Anyone passing through N.C. should fill up in Va. or S.C.
The Dim State legislature has redirected Highway Funds to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars for years. Then they whine about the lack of funds.
As far as substituting a mileage tax for per gallon tax,
yeah riiiiight.
Wouldn't smaller lighter cars traveling fewer miles mean fewer highway repairs?
damn I drive over 100 miles per day 6 days a week...I have a hard time just paying for that gas, now I will need to pay for each mile I drive....time to through the bumbs out
People will roll back the odometer.
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