Gas Taxes

[WolfyOne]

Originally Posted by Linus

Or more, the US gov't artificially suppresses the price and impact of car driving in this nation. Canada (I can't speak for Europe since I haven't been there since I was 8) uses a lot of the taxes towards infrastructure (public transit), road improvements, etc.

I think it would be great if there was public transit everywhere, but it's not possible. Many rural areas where I live can't have it because the poor people wouldn't be able to pay for it. Even the town I'm in only runs regular scheduled bus service during the school year for the college. It's cheap, like 50 cents, but it could take three hours to get to your destination in town.

Basically, I just wanted to make everyone aware of what taxes are at the pump where they live. We get taxed on almost everything except maybe the air we breathe. I think the only ones that come out ahead in all this are the politicians who keep giving each other pay raises.

[dreadgeek]

Originally Posted by WolfyOne

I think it would be great if there was public transit everywhere, but it's not possible. Many rural areas where I live can't have it because the poor people wouldn't be able to pay for it. Even the town I'm in only runs regular scheduled bus service during the school year for the college. It's cheap, like 50 cents, but it could take three hours to get to your destination in town.

Basically, I just wanted to make everyone aware of what taxes are at the pump where they live. We get taxed on almost everything except maybe the air we breathe. I think the only ones that come out ahead in all this are the politicians who keep giving each other pay raises.

I'm curious, if not taxes, how do we go about paying for those things that make a civilization, well, civilized? A lot of folks complain about taxes and yet they never offer an alternative to taxes. If you're not taxed to pay for roads, how do they get paid for? I suppose private companies could build roads and then charge "whatever the market will bear" for use of those roads but is that really a good idea? If you're not taxed to pay for schools, police and fire departments how do they get paid for? How do we pay for the public libraries or, for that matter, the military?

You say the only ones who come out ahead are the politicians but consider that if it weren't for government then private companies would probably take up building roads and then charge whatever they can get away with charging (and they would have, literally, a captive audience since you would be required to pay for ANY use of the road). If private companies handled public safety (police and fire) do you want to have someone run your credit card *before* a cop or EMT is dispatched to your rescue? Don't you think it is a great thing that you can go to your public library and, for free, get books or DVDs which you only have to pay for if they are late and even then the fees are nominal? These are all benefits. Don't you think it is absolutely fabulous that you can, with a phone you can put comfortably into your pocket, call anyone with a phone anywhere on the planet? I do. The private companies don't put those satellites in orbit, NASA does. Without NASA those satellites wouldn't even exist.

We are ahead of where we would be in the arenas of public safety, public education and infrastructure if we didn't have taxes so I think that, in fact, we derive quite a large benefit for our taxes. As a Supreme Court justice remarked at the beginning of the last century "taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society".

I'm open to the idea of paying for these things without taxes if that's possible. So what would you replace taxes with?

Cheers
Aj

[Apocalipstic]

I would pay more taxes at the pump to see better public transit in Nashville.

Way more.

[Greyson]

The gas tax you pay at the pump are State Taxes, and Federal taxes. Mentioned by Hack, Michigan is but one of the states that send more money to Washington D.C. via the gas tax and gets less returned to the State for transportation related infrastructure projects. California, where the most vehicles are registered in the entire nation, does not get back what our gas tax puts into the Federal pot.

At the state level, through various executive mandates the transportation funds get moved into other funding pots that have nothing to do with transportation related projects.

Finally, transportation is not restricted to automobiles and the movement of people. There is also goods (freight)movement, bicycles, pedestrians, rail, maritime.

The development of land, Land Use decisions made by local governments, Planning Commissions, City Councils impact tremendously the patterns of movement and traffic. Next time one of your local elected officials votes to build the Walmart, or the 3000 single home development in what use to be agricultural land, just remember "Nothing is for free."

I to think our gas tax should be used to fund research to wean us off of oil dependency and to build various modes of transportation. The gas tax should not go into the General Fund, ecetera.

[MsDemeanor]

The only thing worse than the pathetically small amount of gas tax that we pay is that the money goes to non-transportation items. Tax the shit out of it and use the money put a 24-hour bus stop on every corner in America until decent rail systems can be built.

[Greyson]

This is timely. You might want to go take a look at this poll. I just read about it today in the online magazine Slate. It is contest for people to offer ideas, vote and comment on ways to improve transportation infrastructure.

Nimble Cities
Help Slate make transportation in and between cities more efficient, safe, and pleasant.By Tom Vanderbilt
Updated Tuesday, June 15, 2010

In the plethora of ideas, restructuring Gas Taxes is one of the ideas entered. Enjoy.



http://www.slate.com/id/2256666/

[Gayla]

And even with the insane amount of taxes we pay on everything, they just cut all Sunday bus service in the my county. :\

Yes, I know it's not all really connected to gas taxes but it still pisses me off.

[WolfyOne]

Originally Posted by dreadgeek

I'm curious, if not taxes, how do we go about paying for those things that make a civilization, well, civilized? A lot of folks complain about taxes and yet they never offer an alternative to taxes. If you're not taxed to pay for roads, how do they get paid for? I suppose private companies could build roads and then charge "whatever the market will bear" for use of those roads but is that really a good idea? If you're not taxed to pay for schools, police and fire departments how do they get paid for? How do we pay for the public libraries or, for that matter, the military?

You say the only ones who come out ahead are the politicians but consider that if it weren't for government then private companies would probably take up building roads and then charge whatever they can get away with charging (and they would have, literally, a captive audience since you would be required to pay for ANY use of the road). If private companies handled public safety (police and fire) do you want to have someone run your credit card *before* a cop or EMT is dispatched to your rescue? Don't you think it is a great thing that you can go to your public library and, for free, get books or DVDs which you only have to pay for if they are late and even then the fees are nominal? These are all benefits. Don't you think it is absolutely fabulous that you can, with a phone you can put comfortably into your pocket, call anyone with a phone anywhere on the planet? I do. The private companies don't put those satellites in orbit, NASA does. Without NASA those satellites wouldn't even exist.

We are ahead of where we would be in the arenas of public safety, public education and infrastructure if we didn't have taxes so I think that, in fact, we derive quite a large benefit for our taxes. As a Supreme Court justice remarked at the beginning of the last century "taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society".

I'm open to the idea of paying for these things without taxes if that's possible. So what would you replace taxes with?

Cheers
Aj

Aj, I didn't post the thread to debate you because you happen to know way more than many of us here. My sole purpose was to enlighten others to the taxes they pay in their state at the pump. I personally don't have solutions to a problem that started long ago. I always thought the tolls we paid on the roads were to go to fix the roads as needed, but perhaps I'm wrong. I also think if taxes were taken out of paychecks for roads and really anything else we may need to sustain us in this civilized society, we'd at least know how to budget better with what we have left over. Seems government has figured out what to take from our checks to pay for federal, state, social security, etc. I also think everything you said is great and yes, we've come a long way as a civilized society.