Attorney General says city can renew 6-cent gas tax

[thelakelander]

Attorney General Pam Bondi says the city of Jacksonville can legally extend the local 6-cent gas tax for up to 30 years, assuaging some uncertainty over the issue and clearing the way for the City Council to begin discussing an extension in the coming weeks.
City Council President Bill Gulliford, who filed legislation last month that would extend the gas tax until 2036, said Bondi's opinion is no surprise.

"I expected that," he said. "I didn't see anything that would be an impediment."

Jacksonville, along with every Florida county, imposes a local gas tax. The city's 6-cent gas tax generates about $30 million per year, the bulk of which finances the Jacksonville Transportation Authority. Gulliford said the gas tax will enable the financing of more than $100 million in backlogged road construction and pay for road maintenance as well as improvements for bicycling and pedestrians.

Full article: http://members.jacksonville.com/news/2014-01-03/story/attorney-general-says-city-can-renew-6-cent-gas-tax

[urbanlibertarian]

If they eliminated the "more than $100 million in backlogged road construction" couldn't they get by with maybe a 2 cent gas tax?

[carpnter]

If they eliminated the "more than $100 million in backlogged road construction" couldn't they get by with maybe a 2 cent gas tax?

It might be important to find out how much of that road construction is repairs to existing roads first.

[thelakelander]

If they eliminated the "more than $100 million in backlogged road construction" couldn't they get by with maybe a 2 cent gas tax?

I'm not sure but it wouldn't save you any money at the pump. Prices would remain consistent with the rest of the region because the gas companies would keep the extra change. You'd also let residents working in Duval but living in surrounding counties off the hook for helping maintain local streets. The biggest loser in having no gas tax revenue would be the Duval County taxpayer.

[urbanlibertarian]

If they eliminated the "more than $100 million in backlogged road construction" couldn't they get by with maybe a 2 cent gas tax?

It might be important to find out how much of that road construction is repairs to existing roads first.

Here's the full sentence:Gulliford said the gas tax will enable the financing of more than $100 million in backlogged road construction and pay for road maintenance as well as improvements for bicycling and pedestrians.

I read that to mean that repairs are separate from the $100 million in construction.  I think that JTA should get out of the road construction business and probably road maintenance as well and focus on transit.

[Tacachale]

Transit should definitely be more of a focus. Either way, a tax on gas is one of the few ways to get some revenue from Clay and St Johns residents who come into Jax and use the infrastructure, but don't pay for it.

[urbanlibertarian]

If they eliminated the "more than $100 million in backlogged road construction" couldn't they get by with maybe a 2 cent gas tax?

I'm not sure but it wouldn't save you any money at the pump. Prices would remain consistent with the rest of the region because the gas companies would keep the extra change. You'd also let residents working in Duval but living in surrounding counties off the hook for helping maintain local streets. The biggest loser in having no gas tax revenue would be the Duval County taxpayer.

I think there's enough competition at the retail level to prevent gas sellers from keeping the extra change.  Also as cars get smaller and more efficient gas tax revenues will continue to fall.  I don't see any way to avoid toll roads or mileage taxes in the future.  We might as well get ahead of the curve.

[thelakelander]

Is there any decent sized county in Florida that doesn't charge a gas tax? It would be interesting to see how their prices at the pump compare. I also agree that tolls are unavoidable but roads are so expensive they won't pay for them either. While a gas tax is unsustainable, it needs to be kept and combined with other new revenue sources to maintain the insane amount of roads we've built to support such a low population density.

[urbanlibertarian]

One reason we have the "insane amount of roads we've built" is because the average user has no idea what the true cost is.  That also goes for other things that are free or subsidized.  When people have to pay a toll or a fee that represents the true cost, things become less popular.

[Charles Hunter]

lake - the article says, "Jacksonville, along with every Florida county, imposes a local gas tax."

About the split between bonding for road construction and for maintenance, towards the end, the article says,

Gulliford ... plans to file companion legislation soon that will spell out how the $30 million would be spent between the city and JTA.  [it] will also stipulate that JTA would assume operations of the St. Johns River Ferry.  The JTA would receive 5 cents of the gas tax.  The city would get 1 cent of the tax, or about $5 million per year, to finance road maintenance and bicycle and pedestrian improvements.

It is true that "per gallon" fuel taxes are unsustainable in the long term.  But, until another mechanism is developed, we will have to use the "per gallon" system.  Mileage fees are an obvious choice, but there are concerns about privacy if on-board GPS-based reporting is used to levy the tax.  These are sought by some, so different tax rates could be charged for lonely country roads at 2am vs. congested inner-city roads at rush hour.  The simpler system of just reporting your odometer reading (with verification, and stiff penalties for falsification) would eliminate the Big Brother concerns, but wouldn't allow different fees for different roads/times.