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but the House refused to back off its you find another problem with it.” tain their highway systems, Congress
May timeline. With the August recess Some in Congress favor a concept has fumbled its responsibility, its consti-
fast approaching, the Senate relented known as “devolution” – making the tutional responsibility to promote inter-
and passed the House version. Action states responsible for funding most of state commerce,” he said.
could still occur in December, but now their own highways with the federal The Arkansas Trucking
Congress will have no incentive to do government remaining in charge of Association’s Newton said a devolved
anything until May. At that point, the the interstate system. An amendment system might result in different states
presidential election will be heating up, by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, would have having vastly different taxes and infra-
Roth said. gradually reduced the federal gas tax to structure priorities. Carriers might
The ATA has made it clear what 3.7 cents. decide to avoid states entirely because of
funding source it supports: an increase the quality of their road system.
in the fuel tax, which since 1993 has “Predicting what it costs to move
been 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline “i thiNk if it was freight in that type of environment
and 24.4 cents for diesel. The ATA is not becomes extremely complicated and
proposing a specific increase, but Roth a seCret ballot, troublesome,” she said.
said an increase of 12 cents per gal- you would haVe Regardless, states likely will have
lon, indexed to inflation, would fund oVerwhelmiNg to shoulder more of the burden of their
the program at current levels without own highway systems. During a July
requiring subsidies from the general support iN CoNgress meeting with consulting engineers,
fund, as is occurring now. Studies have for a fuel tax Arkansas Highway and Transportation
shown that meeting all of the nation’s iNCrease. they just Department Director Scott Bennett said
maintenance and congestion needs Congress’ inability to fund highways
would require fuel taxes to be doubled doN’t waNt to take means, “We’ve got to keep making that
at the national, state and local levels, the risky Vote. transition to where we’re relying on
he said. it less and less, and there are a lot of
Shannon Newton, president of the —darriN roth, states that have done that.”
Arkansas Trucking Association, said ameriCaN truCkiNg About 50 percent of Arkansas high-
they support raising fuel taxes – even assoCiatioNs way dollars comes from the federal gov-
if it’s just diesel taxes. Industry voiced ernment, but federal dollars pay for 70
support for the proposal made in June percent of state highway construction,
by Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., and Sen. Bennett said.
Chris Murphy, D-Conn., that would Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., was According to Bennett,
have raised fuel taxes by 12 cents over one of 28 senators who voted for the Washington’s inability to fund
two years. amendment. His legislative director, highways was a selling point of the
Fuel taxes are a user fee, meaning Kathee Facchiano, said Boozman favors Connecting Arkansas Program, the $1.8
those who directly use the service are devolution as one option for funding billion highway construction program
the ones who actually pay for it. Roth highways, but he is open to other ideas. passed by voters in 2012 and funded
said the ATA has considered other user “We think the states know their proj- with a half-cent sales tax. Arkansas vot-
fee options, including vehicle registra- ects better than the federal government, ers in 2011 also approved the Interstate
tion fees and a tax on barrels of oil, but and they should have a bigger role Rehabilitation Program, which will be
the fuel tax remains “the most efficient, in how much money they’re putting funded by a bond issue. Those two pro-
most fair way to fund highway projects.” towards those projects and how they grams are funding $3 billion worth of
One potential funding source, cur- manage those projects,” she said. work but apply only to 4 percent of the
rently being pilot-tested in Oregon, is a Roth said the ATA is opposed to state’s highway miles.
vehicle miles traveled tax (VMT), where devolving highway funding to the state Any proposed revenue increase will
drivers’ mileage totals will be tracked, level. There is no guarantee states would run up against a political reality: Voters
and they will be taxed accordingly. That increase funding to make up the dif- want roads, but many don’t want to
solution involves higher administrative ference. Meanwhile, some states with pay more money for them. According to
costs and runs into enforcement issues vast highway stretches but small popu- an Associated Press-GfK poll released
because resourceful drivers can tamper lations, such as Montana, would be Aug. 5, while 59 percent of Americans
with the tracking equipment. placed at a disadvantage. say the economic benefits of good high-
“The troubles with vehicle miles “To get from one part of the coun- ways, airports and railroads outweigh
traveled fees are like an onion,” Roth try to the other, you have to cross those
said. “Every time you peel away a layer, states, and if they aren’t able to main-  34

20 ArkAnsAs truckinG rePort | issue 4 2014