California Mileage Tax Would Charge Drivers Based on Distance Driven

http://www.nbclosangeles.com ^ | may 6, 2014 | Jodi Hernandez and Chris Roberts

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Sick of the gas tax?

What about a tax on every mile you drive?

A new bill going through Sacramento would tax drivers for every mile they are on the road.

The state gasoline tax of 52.9 cents per gallon could be replaced with a "miles driven fee" of $0.05 cents or so per mile driven, under state legislation proposed by a Bay Area lawmaker.

State transit officials note that there's not nearly enough money available to fix the many bridges and roads in California that are in desperate need of repair.

A federal highway fund, based on taxes on fuel, is expected to run dry this summer.

“We've got to figure out how to pay for infrastructure,” state Sen. Mark DeSaulnier (D-Concord) said. “One philosophy is, if you use it, you should pay for it.”

Under SB 1077, introduced by DeSaulnier, a still-to-be-determined California city would begin taxing motorists in January 2016. The longer your commute, the more you would pay.

That may yet be a tough sell, but a $0.05 per mile fee could raise over $100 billion for roads in some parts of the state, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune reported.

[publius911]

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