Gasoline tax needs its own tuneup

Published March 5, 2015

Editorial by Rocky Mount, Telegram, March 4, 2015.

The N.C. General Assembly is wrangling over competing bills in the N.C. House and N.C. Senate aimed at raising the state’s gasoline tax to help repair and in some cases rebuild an aging infrastructure of roads and bridges.

While the intent is good, the gasoline tax continues to lose its effectiveness as a state money-maker.

For one thing, it already is high enough that shrewd out-of-state drivers make sure they fill up either north or south of North Carolina to avoid paying a tax that makes our pump prices higher than those in South Carolina or Virginia.

For another thing, cars, trucks and SUVs are becoming more and more fuel efficient. Hybrids and electric vehicles further wallop the amount of gasoline being consumed.

Even with the state population growing at a pace that’s faster than that of most other states, our new residents further strain our aging highway system. Whatever the General Assembly decides to do to pay for road repairs this year, the gasoline tax probably isn’t going to be as sustainable as lawmakers would like to think.

It’s time for creative minds to look for new ways to fund roadwork.

March 5, 2015 at 8:48 am
Richard Bunce says:

Until the Federal government switches from the fuel tax to a nationwide miles driven technology based tax system the State is going to have a difficult time. Suppose you could do a miles driven system for the State and still have the fuel tax for out of State vehicles but gas station would have to change their fuel pumps. State could build system into State issued license plate. Toll the interstates passing through the State and the State issued license plate would satisfy the toll equipment.