phil7782 Loc: Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Mileage-Based Fuel Taxes Coming Down the Road

The good news is that Americans are using less gasoline, due to more fuel-efficient vehicles and declining miles driven following the economic downturn — not to mention hybrid and electric vehicles.

The bad news is that gasoline tax revenues are also down and are not providing sufficient funds to maintain or improve the nation's roads.

Last year Americans traveled 2.93 trillion miles on the roads, down from 3.03 trillion in 2007, according to Diana Furchtgott-Roth, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.

Federal taxes on ordinary gasoline, which are now 18.4 cents per gallon, brought in $36.9 billion for the Highway Trust Fund in 2011, the last year for which statistics are available. Expenditures that year totaled $44.5 billion, a deficit of $7.6 billion.

In fact, the Trust Fund has been running deficits since 2008, and Congress has transferred nearly $35 billion over the past few years to keep the Trust Fund positive.

"In the future, roads will need another stream of funding. The most obvious substitute for fuel taxes is to charge road users directly for vehicle miles driven, enabling them to get the roads they are prepared to pay for," Furchtgott-Roth writes in an article for Market Watch.

One innovative approach can be found in Oregon. The state's Department of Transportation will set up a system for 5,000 volunteer motorists who will pay 1.5 cents per mile rather than the current 30 cents per gallon tax on gasoline. The drivers will be refunded for the tax they pay at the pump.

Several other states are resorting to higher gas taxes, increased sales taxes, or bond issues to fund road maintenance and other infrastructure.

"In the 21st century, charging for roads and deciding where they should go should be the responsibility of state or private providers," Furchtgott-Roth concludes. "The interstate highway system is complete, and the technology for pricing roads without stopping vehicles is readily available.

"As the Highway Trust Fund revenues shrink, those states that are raising funds for their own roads — especially Oregon, with its mileage-based user fee — are the wave of the future."

Phil

Pepper Loc: Planet Earth Country USA

Seems we are fast becoming a country run by a dictator and our dictator is the tax code. The government simply uses the tax code as a hammer instead of the threat of imprisonment. Don't get the mileage we demand, higher taxes, don't have the insurance we demand, higher taxes (penalties), don't build your fence according to our demands here your penalty, don't have a license (our permission) to fish, hunt, drive, build a shed, here's your penalty. Ah yes isn't freedom wonderful.

breck Loc: Derbyshire UK

You might end up like the UK.
We used to have road tyax licenses , Expensive, they were to pay for road building and repairs.
They quietly changed it to a car licence , much more expensive and now just goes into the general tax pocket , it does not all go for road building.
since the down turn in the UK the roads are getting more and more pot holes in them, and you would die if you had to pay UK prices for fuel (which is still mainly tax) They get us both ways in the UK

Skellum0

The problem with mileage based taxes is that they tend to heavily discriminate against rural communities in general and agricultural workers in particular. Various countries have tried versions of this idea, it always ends up being a shambles.

lovesphotos Loc: Colorado and Arizona

What do you mean "becoming"?

tusketwedge Loc: Nova Scotia Canada

If you do the math on the proposal in Oregon the only ones benefiting would be the ones driving gas guzzlers. The ones that are driving cars with good mileage are going to be penalized.
Let's say gas is currently $3.00/g.With the new proposal it would drop to $2.70.
One guy has a gas guzzler that get 10 M.P.G, drives 100 miles.
Uses 10 gal. at 2.70=27.00
100 miles at 1.5=1.50
total cost of trip=28.50 which would cost 30.00
cost per gal=2.85


Now come the poor guy or energy conservative has a car that does 25 miles per gal
travels the same 100 miles
4 gallons at 2.70=10.80
100 miles at 1.5=1.50
total cost of trip 12.30 which at 3.00 would cost 12.00
cost per gal 3.00

It just seems that they are looking out for the guzzlers.

hopthecop Loc: salisbury md

you hit the nail on the head.....we could fix the roads if we stop sending money to the "stans"...

phil7782 Loc: Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Many good points....

In a similar situation, my wife lived in the San Francisco area some years ago. During one of the drought seasons, in order to "save water resources", homeowners were only allowed to water on certain days of the week and could not wash their own cars in their driveways.

People complied and cut water usage dramatically.

The "unacceptable side effect" was that revenues from water bills dropped dramatically, also.

What to do.... what to do...

The water utilities raised their rates in order to save jobs and maintain their facilities and infrastructure.

So, as usual, for doing good for the community, the citizens got to pay more while getting less.

Phil

Hal81 Loc: Bucks County, Pa.

Im old enough to remember when they were bulding the Pa. turnpike. they said when its payed for they would stop the tolls. Even back than I laughed. That will never happen. Now they have more than ten on the board that pull down over three figures. All appointments pay back for politcial favors. These guys do almost nothing except vote to rase tolls every once in a while. All money grabing hacks.

phil7782 Loc: Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Any Tax or Rate Hike is just a clever way to provide a never ending supply of money so Politicians can pay back their friends.

Phil

BTW: In a never-ending effort to help all citizens feel safe and secure, the Federal Gov't has announced that any Gov't Shutdowns, Furloughs and/or Layoffs will NOT affect the NSA and their Spying Operations on YOU !!!

Hal81 Loc: Bucks County, Pa.

With the shoutdown maby obummer can get in another vacation.