State gas tax hike might help roads

A growing backlog of road projects has led Democrats in the Indiana House to propose raising the gas tax by three cents a gallon. This bill needs to be passed because it will fix Indiana roads and bridges and would re-allocate the gas tax to fund only transportation projects. \nThe gasoline tax funds overall state programs. The measure would be the first gas tax hike since 1988, when a penny-per-gallon increase was also used to fund road work. \nThe bill is a good idea because it will help local governments pay for better roads and bridges, many which are unsafe and in disrepair. By making consumers pay slightly more at the pump, the state can make our roads better. Considering the loss of the potholes on Jordan Avenue near Read and the Delta Gamma house makes the extra cash seem worth the extra expense.\nThe bill's proposed tax would cost an average motorist who drives 12,000 miles a year in a car that gets 20 miles per gallon an extra $18 a year. \nIndiana's gas tax is now 15 cents per gallon. The increase would put Indiana a penny shy of the national average. \nThe language in the bill states the funds will also be allocated entirely to transportation programs. Not all of the money now goes toward transportation projects and instead funds other state programs. This bill will ensure that more money will be able to cover construction costs and more projects with the extra money it will provide.\nIncreasing the gas tax by three cents also makes sense when the state wants to increase the funds going to road projects. Raising the tax will cost drivers a bit more. But these roads must be repaired, and it makes more sense to charge those who are driving on them rather than raise the tax on food revenues or on hospital bills when they have nothing to do with roads. \nThis is a simple way to obtain the revenue for these expensive transportation costs with little extra expense to the consumers. \nIn the end, the bill the House Democrats propose is smart. It will fix Indiana roads at a small cost to the consumer.