A gas station attendant adjusts a sign on Dec. 12 in Tolleson, Ariz. (Ross D. Franklin, The Associated Press)
Re: “Capitalize on low fuel prices by raising Colorado gas tax,” Jan. 5 editorial.
The Postap suggestion that it might be a good time to raise Colorado gasoline taxes as prices at the pump continue to drop would provide a much-needed, yet temporary, boost to highway budgets. The improved fuel-efficiency standards recently authorized by Congress, coupled with a growing slice of the motor vehicle fleet shifting to alternative fuels, will rapidly erode the value of any increase. Since TABOR requires majority approval for each tax increase, it might be smarter to ask voters for authorization to exempt transportation funding from TABOR restrictions for a decade so that an incremental shift from fuel taxes to a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) levy can be implemented. This would return highway funding to the “users pay” principle that served us so well for nearly 80 years.
As a precaution, the legislature could be required to approve the transition plan developed by the Colorado Department of Transportation. Itap far too complicated to expect an accurate forecast of the fiscal shifts from year to year, as TABOR demands, when designing a more reliable revenue base for Colorado’s transportation needs.
Miller Hudson, Denver
This letter was published in the Jan. 12 edition.
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