Politics: Proposed gas tax for Alabama

twofbyc said:

I had heard it was a 12 cent tax, but it appears to be 10 cents, implemented over three years.
So I heard on an ad supporting the tax that “other states are passing us, Alabama is falling behind.”
I look at the I-10 corridor in Mississippi (I drive it weekly) and I understand why we’re falling behind: we have dinosaurs in Monkeytown.
Now we are one of four states with no lottery. I don’t know how much money the lottery would bring in yearly, but if combined with a quality casino in Mobile and Baldwin County, I’d imagine its more than a few million. Legalize weed too and forget about the gas tax.

https://www.al.com/news/2019/02/10-...roposal-in-alabama-what-you-need-to-know.html

https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/revenue/colorado-marijuana-tax-data


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Other states are passing Alabama because it is trying to live 50 years in the past, as usual. (Yes, I realize CA is 2nd only to LA in government corruption and may be 1st in inefficiency - the government here admitted that it let mail sit unopened for an entire year then had to hire workers to try to catch up on the backlog)

A lottery in AL would at least capture the money now going to other states out of AL.

Legalizing weed with a modest tax would not only boost revenue but reduce expenditures on something that does nothing at all to promote public safety.

AL's roads need help, but the state is losing teachers in droves and that money could help.

Might also finally expand medicaid as well before every community hospital in the state has to close its doors.

All that said, the increase is likely needed to offset increases in fuel efficiencies in autos. As the GOP is fond of saying, nothing in life is free - and that includes roads.

twofbyc said:

I think the tax is unbalanced. Trucks put more wear and tear on our infrastructure, yet tax on diesel (state) is only a penny higher.

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Formerly having to drive I-81 a lot, I agree wholeheartedly. If I was Planetary Commander, I would put a toll for 18-wheelers of $5 like every ten miles on I-81. 18-wheelers clog up that particular interstate. One truck is doing 50 mph in the right lane and another is doing 50.0001 mph in the left lane. It seems 90% of the accidents on I-81 (and there are quite a lot) involve an 18-wheeler.

Tidewater said:

Formerly having to drive I-81 a lot, I agree wholeheartedly. If I was Planetary Commander, I would put a toll for 18-wheelers of $5 like every ten miles on I-81. 18-wheelers clog up that particular interstate. One truck is doing 50 mph in the right lane and another is doing 50.0001 mph in the left lane. It seems 90% of the accidents on I-81 (and there are quite a lot) involve an 18-wheeler.

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agreed, and they do the same on i-75 between chattanooga and knoxville.

twofbyc said:

I think the tax is unbalanced. Trucks put more wear and tear on our infrastructure, yet tax on diesel (state) is only a penny higher.
That doesn’t seem proportional to the damage they do, the people they injure or kill (and resulting lawsuits), and their numbers are increasing everyday.
Alabama’s tax structure has always leaned against the middle class too heavily.


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Semi-trucks aren't the only vehicles using diesel. At least the 18-wheelers are hit a little heavier due to getting only 6 miles per gallon or so. The difference in the damage they to to the roads and highways compared to regular passenger cars is real; I don't know anything about what tolls and fees they pay.

Tidewater said:

Formerly having to drive I-81 a lot, I agree wholeheartedly. If I was Planetary Commander, I would put a toll for 18-wheelers of $5 like every ten miles on I-81. 18-wheelers clog up that particular interstate. One truck is doing 50 mph in the right lane and another is doing 50.0001 mph in the left lane. It seems 90% of the accidents on I-81 (and there are quite a lot) involve an 18-wheeler.

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I drove I-81 across VA one time on my way to Baltimore. I noticed this. Thankfully I saw no accidents on that trip. That’s one of roughest stretches of interstate I’ve ever driven. It cost me a front tire.


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As usual, Alabama's solution is regressive taxation. God forbid we just jack up property taxes a few mils.

Tidewater said:

Formerly having to drive I-81 a lot, I agree wholeheartedly. If I was Planetary Commander, I would put a toll for 18-wheelers of $5 like every ten miles on I-81. 18-wheelers clog up that particular interstate. One truck is doing 50 mph in the right lane and another is doing 50.0001 mph in the left lane. It seems 90% of the accidents on I-81 (and there are quite a lot) involve an 18-wheeler.

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That's close to how I've described the 18-wheelers on the interstate on some stretches in my area but I'm being generous and use 60mph being passed by semi doing 61 mph... Of course when this is taking place, there are always some passenger vehicle drivers who pass the line of cars by using the right hand lane and squeeze in to move up in the line that has formed in the left hand lane.

day-day said:

That's close to how I've described the 18-wheelers on the interstate on some stretches in my area but I'm being generous and use 60mph being passed by semi doing 61 mph... Of course when this is taking place, there are always some passenger vehicle drivers who pass the line of cars by using the right hand lane and squeeze in to move up in the line that has formed in the left hand lane.

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There is one small stretch of I-81 is three lanes northbound. There were two tractor trailers driving abreast. One in the center lane, the other in the left lane. The right lane was empty. They were driving about 10-15 miles per hour under the speed limit (this section of I-81 is an uphill section, which is why they put the third lane in). I got behind the guy in the center lane, flashed my lights, honked my horn. Nothing. So I got into the right land and passed them, then got over into the center lane in front of the 18-wheeler. And gradually slowed down. The guy flashed his lights and honked his horn at me, but I did not speed up again until he got over into the right lane.

Normally I do not drive like that, but this particular evening I recalled all of those times 18-wheelers had camped out in the left lane, and I was feeling ornery. Anybody who has driven on a German autobahn knows how drivers who refuse to get over are treated.

jthomas666 said:

As usual, Alabama's solution is regressive taxation. God forbid we just jack up property taxes a few mils.

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I don't like it either, but just how much land do you own in Alabama? I would love to see them take a look at where they are wasting money prior to taxing anything.

This gas tax is not going where they're selling it. Half of it is going to the court system.

Tidewater said:

There is one small stretch of I-81 is three lanes northbound. There were two tractor trailers driving abreast. One in the center lane, the other in the left lane. The right lane was empty. They were driving about 10-15 miles per hour under the speed limit (this section of I-81 is an uphill section, which is why they put the third lane in). I got behind the guy in the center lane, flashed my lights, honked my horn. Nothing. So I got into the right land and passed them, then got over into the center lane in front of the 18-wheeler. And gradually slowed down. The guy flashed his lights and honked his horn at me, but I did not speed up again until he got over into the right lane.

Normally I do not drive like that, but this particular evening I recalled all of those times 18-wheelers had camped out in the left lane, and I was feeling ornery. Anybody who has driven on a German autobahn knows how drivers who refuse to get over are treated.

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I’ve seen plenty of signs here that make it illegal for trucks to be in the left lane of a three or more lane highway.


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The thing is open ended if I understand correctly, so there is no end to the increases.
The Port of Mobile gets a chunk off the top (not a road).
State gets a chunk off after that.
Counties, cities, municipalities divvy up what’s left.
JeffCo gets over $6 million.
My county gets a little over a million and in the process loses $133,000 in federal funds they are getting.
According to my county commissioner, that extra money will bring the time frame down to rework all the districts roads to over 130 years. This means nothing for aging bridges that are on a 50 year replacement schedule.

I want to see efficiencies and not a red cent more tax money till they trim waste. I have a family member who is a contractor for road work. He says that ALDOT has doubled or tripled the number of employees in the last few years and is doing the same amount of work they were doing before.
There is a project on a state road being done close to me. The project is half done and is shut down/on hold. All the workers/equipment has left. Over the last week there was observed 3 brand new state trucks parked on a side road near the project, engine running and 3 men standing there chatting it up for no telling how long. Drawing a check and doing nothing productive but lining their pockets from mine. This is the stuff I want cleaned up so materials can be bought and used to resurface roads. I want the people working off the funds generated from tax revenue to realize it’s not free money, it’s their neighbors money and to be responsible with it.

Bamabuzzard said:

Be careful what you give the tax assessor's office the power to do. Granted, you don't live in Louisiana but here's how property taxes work here. The tax assessor's office inflates your land/home to a value that you couldn't sell on the open market. Then uses that unrealistic basis to apply the millage rates. Or, it's real "fun" when they decide to not only inflate the value of your land/home but also raise the millage rates to boot. It goes back to the government acting in a truly fair manner.

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oh, they do that too--during the Riley administration they changed from reassessing property values every two years to every year. But I'm willing to bet that the large landholders don't have their property revalued that often.