Snyder pushes $1.4B gas tax hike to improve roads

By David Eggert Associated Press LANSING (AP) - Gov. Rick Snyder on Monday stepped up pressure on the Legislature to more than double fuel taxes to raise $1.4 billion a year to mend roads, warning that Michigan's infrastructure will only deteriorate further if lawmakers don't act now. Snyder, a Republican, is backing legislation recently passed by the Republican-led Senate that would increase the 19-cents-a-gallon state gasoline tax to the equivalent of 44 cents over four years, based on today's wholesale prices. The bill faces an uncertain future in the GOP-controlled House, which has nine voting days left before bills die for the year. The governor urged people to ask their representatives to take a "tough vote." "Every day that passes it's only going to get worse. Pothole season isn't going to be any better next year," he said at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, where in October 2011 he first called for spending significantly more in the transportation budget that funds roads, bridges and public transit. Holding up plywood that's used underneath some highway overpasses to protect vehicles from falling concrete, Snyder ticked off a "long checklist" of why action is needed: to help residents avoid unnecessary vehicle repairs caused by poor roads, to save lives by making roads safer and to aid economic development. He said the state took the rare step of diverting $200-$300 million a year from the general fund to transportation in recent years, but "it's not good enough, folks." Snyder and legislative leaders have made transportation funding their top priority in the lame-duck session scheduled to end Dec. 18. Among those joining the governor Monday were Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, a Republican, and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel, a Democrat, who lead the second- and third-biggest Michigan counties. Hackel said road conditions are "embarrassing" and urged legislators to find a fix. Patterson said: "I don't know how you can get there unless we look at a serious tax increase. ... I'm on board with the governor's plan." Some lawmakers at Snyder's event raised concerns that a 1951 state law setting how transportation dollars are distributed disproportionately favors the construction of rural roads instead of urban roads with more traffic. Among them was Rep. Anthony Forlini, a Republican from Macomb County's Harrison Township, who said current transportation revenue could still be divvied up the old way but additional tax revenue should be allocated on a per-capita, lane-mile basis. Forlini also echoed criticism that Michigan has some of the country's highest taxes at the pump but spends less on transportation than other states because the sales tax applied to fuel mostly goes to schools and local governments under the state constitution. Snyder agreed that the funding formula isn't "great" but said he doubts a road deal could occur if lawmakers try to adjust the formula this month. He said he'd also be open if the Legislature - after enacting the Senate plan or something similar - eventually looks to eliminate Michigan's sales tax on gas while asking voters to increase the overall 6 percent sales tax and dedicate $1.2 billion more to roads. House Speaker Jase Bolger has said the Senate-approved fuel tax hike faces an "uphill climb." -------- Online: House Bills 5477: http://1.usa.gov/1130724. Published: Wed, Dec 03, 2014