tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3471471289744825428.post575824621980686494..comments2024-03-11T00:31:41.186-07:00Comments on The Oregon Economics Blog: Gas TaxPatrick Emersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17242234148546323374noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3471471289744825428.post-47872957170116735612009-03-09T15:48:00.000-07:002009-03-09T15:48:00.000-07:00Thanks MPPBrian,I did not know of this constitutio...Thanks MPPBrian,<BR/><BR/>I did not know of this constitutional restriction. I suppose I give too little creedence to the other side of the debate which is it forces government to invest in things that are easily cut for political expediency. <BR/><BR/>Either way, I say increase the gas tax!Patrick Emersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17242234148546323374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3471471289744825428.post-78710153218652875152009-03-09T14:14:00.000-07:002009-03-09T14:14:00.000-07:00There are a couple reasons new revenue from a gas ...There are a couple reasons new revenue from a gas tax increase cannot and should not go into the general fund.<BR/><BR/>First, the Oregon constitution restricts money from motor fuels taxes to be used for roads. Changing this would require a constitutional amendment and a vote of the people, so we wouldn't get any of the money until November 2010.<BR/><BR/>Second, our roads are not in great shape. For many years, cities, counties, and state transportation leaders have complained that the gas tax does not generate enough revenue to maintain the roads we have now. We have resorted to lottery bonding to fix our cracked bridges. Since the gas tax is the only realisitc way to pay for increased investment in road maintenance, any increases in this tax should be dedicated to roads.<BR/><BR/>That being said, once we've taken care of our infrastructure needs, I wouldn't be opposed to some sort of carbon tax to discourage global warming, as long as it applied to all carbon sources, not just gasoline. But I think we should take care of first things first and fix our transportation financing system.MPPBrianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09349552296333385953noreply@blogger.com