We need to increase Michigan’s gas tax five cents now to avoid losing 20 cents a gallon in federal funding toward our state and local roads.

Lack of action will — in effect — cost state taxpayers 20 cents a gallon or $475 million during the next fiscal year.

Under a federal highway program, Michigan can receive 80 percent of the funding for some road repair and construction as long as the state commits to paying the other 20 percent.

Failure to obtain those funds, which actually come from what Michigan residents pay toward their federal gas taxes, would be a serious setback toward maintaining our state, county and local roads.

Capturing all funds available to Michigan at 20 cents on the dollar should clearly be a non-partisan issue.

We are a donor state now, with Michigan losing about 8 percent of what it pays in federal tax dollars through such federal programs. We will lose millions more by not capturing these available road funds in the future. 

The Michigan Department of Transpor­tation staff is waiting for our legislators to act on the matter. As a taxpayer, I am quite disturbed by the lack of quick legislative action. 

The MDOT staff needs lead time to set up the stream of revenue and to prepare and forward the necessary application to the Federal Highway Administration.

It will also need time to plan internally and plan the proper distribution of these funds through the various local county Road Commissions, then on to local communities.

There will be further setbacks at all levels of government in maintaining our roads without legislative action. Time is of the essence.

I urge you to call your legislators now and tell them to back the bill establishing an immediate 5 cents a gallon tax increase, effective Oct. 1, 2010.

Having been a public official for over 38 years as well as a department head in public works and engineering, my experience tells me this is not the time to be penny wise and dollar foolish. The state needs to capture every dollar it can from the federal government and put it into our roads.
 

http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2010/06/29/opinion/doc4c2a8ab65fe24670058769.txt