DALLAS — A revised roadmap of transportation funding options indicates a fee system based on vehicle miles traveled could replace the money generated from the current federal gasoline tax, but faces significant opposition from a wary public.
The updated revenue-generating matrix from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials provides estimates and reviews of infrastructure funding proposals ranging from higher customs fees to a per-barrel sales tax on imported oil.
The revenue
"Our board is strongly committed to assisting Congress to identify the long-term, sustainable funding needed to shore up the struggling Highway Trust Fund," Lee said. "These are options that could be considered by Congress to close the revenue gap and strengthen the trust fund."
The General Accounting Office has estimated that an additional $15 billion to $17 billion a year from some other revenue source will be needed to keep the HTF functioning and solvent over the next 10 years. The most recent extension of the HTF that Congress passed in late July required a transfer of almost $11 billion from other funds to keep the fund solvent through May 31.
The recently revised matrix, which was first developed in 2012 while the current highway bill was being debated, is intended to help lawmakers decide on a revenue solution "based on Congressional leadership and 'the art of the possible,' " said AASHTO Executive Director Bud Wright.
The matrix does not identify a preferred method of raising additional transportation revenue, Lee said.
"Its purpose is to serve as a technical resource for Congress," he said.
Federal taxes of 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel bring in about $38 billion a year to the Highway Trust Fund, but federal transportation spending from the HTF tops $50 billion a year.
A federal VMT charge of 1 cent per mile for passenger cars and light-duty vehicles and 4 cents per mile for heavy-duty trucks would total $38 billion a year and $246 billion through 2020, AASHTO said.
But while a VMT system has a large revenue potential and is a user-based fee, AASHTO said the proposal is not a viable short-term solution without a proven track record. Public and political opposition to VMT tracking on privacy grounds could be difficult to overcome, it said.
Increases of 10% in the diesel and gasoline taxes would generate an additional $20 billion a year, according to the revenue matrix.
A federal sales tax at the pump of 5.6% on gasoline and a 7.6% on gasoline would generate $33 billion a year, AASHTO said, and a $2.50 per-barrel levy on imported crude oil would total $5.8 billion a year.
