Several states around the country decided
in 2013 to use a variety of tax and fee increases to fund infrastructure
improvements. This month Pennsylvania lifted the cap on taxes on the price of
gasoline at a wholesale level and raised the fees associated with driver’s
licenses and traffic violations. Earlier this year, Virginia scrapped their
17.5 cent per gallon gasoline tax and replaced it with a 3.5 percent wholesale
tax, increased vehicle registration fees, and established a special
registration fee for hybrid vehicles which use less gas.
Maryland, Wyoming, Massachusetts,
and Vermont all increased the taxes on gasoline as well. While infrastructure
spending has faced continual challenges at the federal level, voters at the
state level have indicated that they are willing to pay for infrastructure
improvements. This fall, 86 percent of ballot measures for transportation
funding were approved by voters.