The gas tax is already a heavy burden on low-income families and the many Iowans who must drive long distances to their jobs.
Don’t impose this increase on overtaxed Iowans when our state government is already doing record-high spending, both from the state general fund and from road funds! Iowa’s state spending spree should not be made even worse by raising taxes!
This tax increase scheme is like a man who buys a new car and starts an addition to his house, but then asks his boss for a raise because he can’t afford to feed his family! Don’t let our state copy that guy’s priorities!
Key fact: Iowa state government has plenty of money to fix and maintain our roads and bridges! Iowa needs smarter spending and better priority-setting, not higher taxes.
Instead of raising motor fuel taxes, our Governor and Legislature should do these 3 pro-taxpayer tasks:
- Use for roads and bridges a fair share of the state’s huge general fund spending — now almost $7 billion and rising again. Are all of those dollars spent for higher priorities than roads? Let’s change their priorities; don’t take more from overtaxed Iowans.
- Take a good long look at Iowa’s Road Use Tax Fund distribution formula. It last was changed in 1989. Secondary roads and bridges are 80% of Iowa roads but receive less than one-fourth of Iowa road funds. Does this make sense? And let’s use all road dollars more efficiently, where needs are greatest. The Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) has taken some good steps, but much more efficiency is needed.
- Work with Iowa’s Congressional delegation to get rid of federal top-down restrictions on how states use their federal road tax funds. Iowans can spend more wisely than Washington DC. This needed reform will be strongly pushed in the new Congress.