Michigan lawmakers introduce plan to hike state gas tax.

[Retroit]

Bcscott:Well hey, I don't have any kids and I graduated high school a long time ago so I don't want to pay any taxes that will benefit public schools. Millage increases don't help me personally. Plus, my house didn't burn down so I don't want to fund those greedy firefighters either.

I'm not a big fan of public schools either, but unfortunately the majority of people think that an educated populace is beneficial to society [[like as if it has really helped! ). I'd also support private fire-fighting services, but that would go over like a lead balloon!

Penalizing people for driving may cause them to drive less, decreasing revenue from lost gas taxes. This compunds the problem, it doesn't solve it.

As DetroitPlanner said, if people drive less, less roads are needed, less maintenance is required, therefore less revenue is needed from gas taxes. Not to mention other benefits, like less dependence on foreign oil, less likelihood of conflict with oil producing countries, less pollution, demand for more fuel efficient modes of transportation, etc.

© Copyright 2010 Retroit. All rights reserved.

[Hermod]

As DetroitPlanner said, if people drive less, less roads are needed, less maintenance is required, therefore less revenue is needed from gas taxes. Not to mention other benefits, like less dependence on foreign oil, less likelihood of conflict with oil producing countries, less pollution, demand for more fuel efficient modes of transportation, etc.

Not the way it works, lad.

1. Gas prices go up [[Arabs jack the price or the politicians jack the tax).

2. People drive less or switch to electric cars, hybrid cars, or econo boxes.

3. Gas tax intake to the state and feds goes down.

4. Highway demons in their 18-wheelers keep trashing the roads.

5. Gas tax gotta go up to keep the bucks rolling in.


Same thing when you conserve water.

Dollar intake goes down at the water plant.

Money not enough to pay the salaries of the water bureaucracy.

Water rates per gallon go up.

[Retroit]

4. Highway demons in their 18-wheelers keep trashing the roads.

If the gas tax is high enough, more freight will be shipped via rail.

[mjs]

Not the way it works, lad.

1. Gas prices go up [[Arabs jack the price or the politicians jack the tax).

2. People drive less or switch to electric cars, hybrid cars, or econo boxes.

3. Gas tax intake to the state and feds goes down.

4. Highway demons in their 18-wheelers keep trashing the roads.

5. Gas tax gotta go up to keep the bucks rolling in.

Granted, but its not the whole story.

Assuming $2.50 a gallon plus a $0.19 tax switching to a $0.27 tax, a new gas tax that drives consumption down 3% would be break even for the average driver while increasing gas tax revenue by 42%.

Gas consumption would have to go down 30% before the tax creates no revenue gain and if that happened, the average driver would spend 28% less on gas and gas taxes.

Creating cleaner air while saving gas money. Sounds great to me. Sounds even better when its been shown that cleaner air reduces health care costs.

[Hermod]

Granted, but its not the whole story.

Assuming $2.50 a gallon plus a $0.19 tax switching to a $0.27 tax, a new gas tax that drives consumption down 3% would be break even for the average driver while increasing gas tax revenue by 42%.

Gas consumption would have to go down 30% before the tax creates no revenue gain and if that happened, the average driver would spend 28% less on gas and gas taxes.

Creating cleaner air while saving gas money. Sounds great to me. Sounds even better when its been shown that cleaner air reduces health care costs.

Then why are they talking switching to a GPS reporting system for miles driven to tax cars? They are saying that if everyone goes to high mileage or electric cars, they won't have enough tax money for the roads.

[mjs]

Then why are they talking switching to a GPS reporting system for miles driven to tax cars? They are saying that if everyone goes to high mileage or electric cars, they won't have enough tax money for the roads.

They won't at $0.19 a gallon. With the reduced fuel consumption the state has seen, $0.19 isn't enough now. Hence the proposed tax.

Electric cars are currently taxed at whatever the electric tax comes out to. Obviously a great deal less. If future commuters all drive electric cars, but goods are still transported by diesel, perhaps transporters will finally pay their fair a share of the roads. I bet Michigan's insane truck weight limits will go down then.

I don't know who is talking about intrusive GPS seeing how a mileage tax could simply be assessed when the driver goes to renew the plates. My guess is that "they" are either in the oil and gas industry or receive alot of money from their lobbyists.

[DetroitPlanner]

Then why are they talking switching to a GPS reporting system for miles driven to tax cars? They are saying that if everyone goes to high mileage or electric cars, they won't have enough tax money for the roads.

A GPS system, while being a more 'fair' way of doing things is still frought with problems. People do not want big brother watching them. Dollars to donuts people will figure out how to operate their vehicles without these things tracking them, older vehicles will get a free ride, and you pay the same amount regardless if you drive a Fusion Hybrid or an H2 the same distance. If one wants to use the carrot and the stick to get more Fusion Hybrids on the road and fewer H2's; GPS won't work unless you start adding in a weight factor, which complicates an already complicated process.

This would require quite a bit of legislative work to pass, and there would need to be some sort of reciprocal agreements between the states and the also an agreement between the feds and the states on how this system would work. It could end up being even more beurcratic than what we have now.