The world has truly gone mad when I am so impressed with an article in the Arizona Republic that I feel compelled to share it here so my own readers will see it. Someone wake me! My only disclaimer is that I don’t blame Bush for not snapping his fingers and fixing this issue as Roberts seems to recommend. As for the injustice of this Federal gas tax as it relates to Arizona, I couldn’t agree more. - Pamela
The following excerpts are from an article that was printed in the Arizona Republic, Aug. 31, 2005 titled Something smells: Gas tax funding too much pork
By Laurie Roberts
“Next time you buy gas, think of Alaska and say, ‘You're welcome.’ With every gallon you pump, you're helping to build a $223 million bridge that'll connect the tiny town of Ketchikan, Alaska, to an island where 50 people live.””Next time you wonder just why you are shelling out 18.4 cents in federal taxes for every gallon of gas you buy, just think of the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich. ($1.5 million) and the National Packard Museum in Warren, Ohio ($3 million) and Children's Museum in Indianapolis ($12.5 million). You're paying $3 million for dust control in Arkansas, $2.3 million for landscaping along the Ronald Reagan Freeway in California and $100 million for a tunnel under New York Harbor. “”It was never supposed to be this way. The Highway Trust Fund, which is fueled by the gas tax, was created in 1956 to build the interstate highway system. The 3-cent tax was supposed to expire in 1972. Instead, the gas tax is now 18.4 cents and the Highway Trust Fund is nothing more than a slush fund enabling well-connected politicians to bring home the bacon at the expense of states such as Arizona.””Better yet, how about cutting the federal gas tax to the few pennies a gallon needed to maintain the interstate system and letting states impose their own taxes for their own needs?”
To read the entire article, go to www.arizonarepublic.com or click on HERE.
