Perry calls for end to gas tax diversions - Really? [View all]
After starving & raiding the gas tax for his entire administration, Texas Governor Rick Perry has finally decided to get on board with ending diversions of our state gas tax for non-transportation purposes. Conservatives have been crying foul for over a decade to end the raid of our gas taxes for things that have nothing to do with transportation. So while this is a welcome announcement, it’s a bit late in the game.
Gas tax diversions are part of the reason there’s a structural shortfall in funding for roads. The state gas tax has not been raised in Texas since 1991, and Perry has refused to consider raising it. Why? Not because he’s a genuine fiscal conservative, but because he’s committed to slapping tolls on everything that moves. Since the way the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is structuring Texas toll road deals is really a new tax, Perry can outsource the tax increase to local toll authorities. The problem? Toll authorities are unelected boards and toll roads are punitively more expensive than a gas tax funded road system.
a whole lot more to the story
http://www.examiner.com/article/perry-calls-for-end-to-gas-tax-diversions-really?CID=examiner_alerts_article
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