The Choice is Yours: How Will We Pay for Quality Roads?

(or choose to endure poorer quality roads)?

A simulation: Our study concerning the amount of additional money needed to maintain our roads at reasonable levels (95% rated good or fair for freeways, 85% for all other paved roads) is about $1.4 billion in the early years and rising due to inflation.

Using the options below, indicate how you would come up with the $1.4 billion. Excluded are options that would require 2/3 vote of both houses and a vote of the people (i.e., constitutional amendments for changes to the sales tax) and items that would generate less than $10 million per year.

Revenue Increases:

$_________ $43.5 million per 1 cent increase in gas tax from 19 cents per gallon.

$_________ $7.7 million per 1cent increase in diesel fuel tax from 15 cents per gallon. E.g, $30.8 million if brought up to parity at 19 cents per gallon.

$_________ $86.5 million per 10% increase in vehicle registration fees. E.g., it would take a 162% increase to achieve $1.4 billion additional revenue.

$_________ $150 million via eliminating the registration discounts immediately for all vehicles (not just new).

$_________ $24 million by charging new registration fee at time of plate transfer and not at plate expiration.

$_________ $12.6 million by abolishing 1.5 cent gasoline cost of collection exemption.

$_________ $100 million per 1/10 of a cent per vehicle mile traveled, based on a third party verified, self-reporting system established in conjunction with vehicle registration (vs. devices in vehicles measuring or reporting mileage). E.g., $1 billion if 1 cent per mile. During start up phase, increase vehicle registration fees.

$_________ House Bill 4521 (H-1) would redirect to state and local road programs an amount of sales tax revenue related to gasoline sales in a range from $83.1 million (at $3.00 per gallon) to $112.7 million (at $4.00 per gallon). This is revenue that would otherwise be credited to the state General Fund and would somehow need to be replaced or appropriations reduced (per House Fiscal Agency).

$_________ $826 million per year at 6.7% sales tax on fuel at the wholesale level, equivalent to the amount of gasoline tax collected at 19 cents per gallon.

Lower Quality Level Targets:

$_________ $105 million if set target percentage of freeways that are rated "good" or "fair at 90%, instead of 95%.

$_________ $146 million if set target percentage of non-freeways state trunkline highways that are rated "good" or "fair at 80%, instead of 85%.

$_________ $70 million if set target percentage of federal aid, non-trunkline highways that are rated "good" or "fair at 80%, instead of 85%.

$_________ $58 million if set target percentage of freeways that are rated "good" or "fair at 80%, instead of 85%.

$_________ Other: ____________________

======= Total ($1.4 billion - items selected must total this amount)