California needs the gas tax
The California tax on motor fuels has gone up 12 cents per gallon on gasoline and 20 cents per gallon on diesel. The new motor fuel tax targets the repair of California’s sorry public roadways, and that should be a welcome development, yet certain vulnerable politicians are crying about the tax, attempting to leverage the issue for their personal electoral survival.
So, what will this fuel tax cost? At my house, our family cars travel about 30,000 miles every year, consuming about 1,200 gallons of gas. So, our contribution to fixing California’s beat up roadways will be less than $3 a week.
The math: (1,200 x 0.12)/52 = $2.76
The roadwork will employ a lot of people, and they will pay taxes and buy stuff. The roads aren’t free, and we need them. Let’s pull together on this one.
Bill Miller, Paso Robles
This story was originally published January 23, 2018 at 2:20 PM with the headline "California needs the gas tax."