#ncga: Lightening some wallets to make NC the “Good Roads State”
Aaaaaaaaaand the “conservative revolution” rolls on. Rep. John Torbett (R-Stanley) introduced HB 927 that whacks the gas tax down to size but jacks up all kinds of fees for North Carolina drivers and taxpayers. Here are some of the, um, “highlights”: 
- […] ? Cut the gas tax from 36 cents a gallon to 30 cents starting July 1 until January 2017. (The legislature voted in March to drop the tax in several steps to 34 cents during that period.) Starting in 2017, the tax would be expected to rise slowly according to a new formula that tracks state population growth and national energy inflation rates.
- Increase the state’s highway use tax on car sales, now 3 percent, to 4 percent in January 2016.
- Increase the tax on car rentals, from 8 percent to 9 percent on short-term rentals and from 3 percent to 4 percent on long-term rentals.
- ? Phase out over four years the transfer of $255 million in gas tax collections and other Highway Fund money to the General Fund, which is for non-transportation purposes. This proposal matches language in a Senate bill.
- Increase Division of Motor Vehicles fees for a long list of licenses, permits, titles and registrations. The annual car registration fee would rise from $28 to $42.
- Increase fees for trucks and fees charged by weight for property-hauling vehicles.
- Introduce a new 6.5 percent tax collected on automobile insurance premiums
- Make additional increases in gas and highway use taxes that would be triggered if federal transportation funds to North Carolina are sharply reduced. […]
It’s all a shell game. Sleight of hand. *Watch my left hand, but ignore what the right is doing.* This increases the cost of living. The cost of doing business. It’s exactly the opposite of what we need in these tough economic times. THIS is not what we voted all of these Rs into office for.
This is highway robbery. I am beginning to think the Repubs are not our friends.
Government’s everywhere are taking advantage of the example set by the despots in Washington. They see their citizens in a ostensible state of weakness (gutless fear), and they respond accordingly. They never describe the ‘requirements’ that spawn tax & fee increases; they do it just because they can, and dispense the revenues to enhance their standing with their cronies.
I want Jerry Tillman and Janie Boles to stand up and explain this to us in terms of the specific ‘transportation requirements’, debate their priority, define their phasing over time, their individual phased costs, and how they intend to report progress to you and me along that pre-planned spending timeline.
And, oh by the way, where does transportation as a function fit in the Republican vision for the State out to, say, 2040 or so? That is the role and the signature of statesmanship, when we begin thinking beyond the next election.
I’ve always thought that the State government is our bulwark against the predations of Washington. I’m beginning to apprehend that they are more than anything in alliance against us.
I think more and more people are apprehending the same.
Homey rhetoric is wearing thin.
I’ve always thought that the State government is our bulwark against the predations of Washington….
No. Hey we’ve got a brotherhood here and have a secret code, we’re not going to sell out our politcal bretheren. We like to as we call it “work together to get things done” to you.
You people that are not elected, well you’re just kind of out of luck and don’t have access to the brotherhood, but we’ll be needing you around election time again so don’t stray too far.
Remember I am the elected official, you are the citizen, you need to sit down and be quiet.
Elected A$$Hole. Your money has been cut off by the average citizen because you don’t represent us. You are bought by corparatocracy. sorry about the spelling.
The gas tax doesn’t bother me that much, if you drive more – you buy more gas and put more wear on the roads. A tax by vehicle weight could be a sensible alternative since heavier vehicles wear the roads faster and it brings in electric/hybrid vehicles better. If you hate these taxes enough, you can drive less or drive something different,
What I see as sneaky taxes are the auto insurance sales tax, and raising the sales tax on automobiles to 4%. A new economy car nowadays is easily 25,000 so that’s $250 a pop per sale. Insurance is mandatory so in effect that’s another inescapable tax.
The only ones who should be charged a vehicle fee to use the roads are the owners of electric cars. They pay no gas gas, and should not be allowed to mooch off of those who do.
“Conservatism”.
What if driving less or driving something else is not an option. Where are the cuts in spending. Where are the reductions in give aways. As always, the Repubs condemn the tax and spend tactics of the left but as soon as they are in power realize how much fun it is to spend the earnings of others. I’m sick of all this tax and spend without ever cutting. Any politician who says they have cut as much as they can should be hog-tied and tarred and feathered. Any politician who plays a tax increase off as a reduction should be done the same. It’s time that we start taking some action to get these liars out of office. Sad part is every time you try to field a true fiscal conservative the GOP and liberal media torpedo them and the low information and easily controlled voters cast their vote for the GOP neo-con. That’s the stage being set for the national election currently.
Here’ an idea. Let’s vote only for incumbents (provided they are effective) with one term under their belts. All others … the problems … get zippo for votes. Think they’d get the message?
That criteria does not seperate the wheat from the chaff. There are solid conservatives with more than one term and RINOs with only one term, and vice versa.
Income taxes were too high under Perdue but at least they were deductible on Federal forms. If we have to be taxed further to own automobiles then at least do it as a state property tax so we can itemize.
The 1% sales tax is probably the worst idea here. Most folks finance their cars. It’s like another hidden half percent in terms of out-of-pocket cost.
Plus, don’t the people low on the wage scale usually pay higher interest rates? You’d think the Democrats would “care” for their constituency.
Oh well this is the same legislature that was hell bent on creating toll roads. And the same party that removed anti-toll language from the platform and passed a rule making it very difficult to debate legislative matters at the convention. Figures.
You do realize the Republicans control the state house, senate and executive branches?
The state budget is, I think, around $23B, and the GOP owns pretty much the whole state government.
If you can’t figure out how to do the very few jobs you’re supposed to, with that kind of bucket of money (let alone a smaller one), there’s no point in having you in office. At the least, stop pretending you’re different and give a —– about limited, smaller government.
It’s really like that whiny teenager who blows all his allowance on video games and junk food and partying with his friends all weekend, but then arrogantly strolls in Monday morning and demands gas money so he can get to school.