Members of the Transportation Funding Task Force (TF2) unveiled a package of bills on Thursday that would provide a long-term boost to Michigan’s deteriorating roads and bridges.
The legislative funding package would replace the current 19-cents per gallon fuel tax and replace it with a percentage tax on the wholesale price of gas. It would also increase the vehicle registration fee by 10 percent the first year and 20 percent the subsequent four years. When fully implemented, depending on the price of fuel, the state could increase transportation funding by as much as $1.8 billion annually, and serve as a down payment on fixing Michigan’s deteriorating roads and bridges.
The long-awaited package was crafted after months of negotiations between the administration and transportation leaders in the House and Senate and was unveiled in the rotunda of the capitol building.
MITA believes that if legislators do not address the funding issue by the time legislators go on summer break in early July, the issue will likely be put on hold until after the November 2010 elections. Unfortunately, dwindling revenues and a shortfall of $100 million in state transportation dollars means Michigan will not be able to capture almost $600 million a year in federal aid, which then must be returned to Washington to be used by other states. That’s why it is so important for MITA members to call their legislators today!
Click here for a copy of the press release.
Click here for more details.
If you have already called your legislators in the past, MITA urges you to call them again. A single phone call, letter or e-mail is not enough to influence a legislator. It is important to have an ongoing dialogue and putting continuous pressure on them that it is time to fix our roads.
Please feel free to contact Mike Nystrom at mikenystrom@mi-ita.com or Keith Ledbetter at keithledbetter@mi-ita.com or call the MITA office at 517-347-8336 with any questions or comments.
