We need to modernize and stabilize funding for our critical transportation needs while keeping the tax burden on Georgians as low as possible. That’s what I believe.
Last week, I introduced the Transportation Funding Act which provides for critical needs like road resurfacing and bridge maintenance. We’ve got roads in Georgia that, right now, will only be resurfaced once every 50 years. According to the Georgia Department of Transportation, we’ve got more than 1,700 bridges at some level of structural deficiency in need of repair and maintenance.
Our current transportation funding system is complicated and outdated. It involves a combination of excise tax and sales taxes that makes long-term revenue projections unreliable. What I have proposed is converting to an excise tax-only model. Excise taxes can be more precisely forecasted and provide a more stable revenue source to fund our roads and bridges.
Some have called this plan a tax increase. It is not.
The proposed state excise tax on gasoline is set at 29.2 cents per gallon. This approximates the amount of tax that Georgians paid on a gallon of gasoline over the last four years. The average total price of gasoline in Georgia during that time period was $3.39 per gallon, according to the Georgia Department of Revenue.
We are committed to keeping the tax burden on Georgia families low. That is why this plan only asks Georgians to continue paying what they have been paying in motor fuel taxes over the last four years.
I know that some local governments are concerned this plan will impact their revenue streams. There will be a period of adjustment for local governments as current SPLOSTs expire, but any SPLOST currently being collected will not be impacted by this plan.
After current SPLOSTs expire, local governments would be able to plan new SPLOSTs where they could raise approximately 90 percent of the value of previous SPLOSTs with the new exemption on motor fuel. Local governments could also levy additional excise taxes on motor fuel, within limits, to pay for local transportation purposes.
While the conversion to the excise tax model is perhaps the most noticeable change in this plan, it is just one component of this comprehensive package.
We’ve also planned to increase state grants for local maintenance projects and matching funds for local transportation projects.
We’re asking those who drive alternative fuel vehicles to join those who drive gas and diesel powered vehicles in paying a user-fee for their fair share of the maintenance and upkeep of the roads and bridges that they use.
We intend that the revenue from this fee will go toward our state’s 128 transit systems. We know transit needs to be a part of this and future transportation plans.
As this bill moves through the legislative process, we’ll need serious people to offer constructive advice on how to make it better. By working together, we can pass a package that responsibly provides for Georgia’s future.
