After weeks of speculation, Gov. Martin O’Malley finally sort of released his gas tax proposal on Tuesday.
The governor’s office sent the long-awaited details of his proposal to the media, but indicated the bill would only be available on the General Assembly website. The bill, which would extend the state’s 6% sales tax to gasoline, will not be formally introduced in the General Assembly until the sessions Wednesday morning.
The legislation is O’Malley’s answer to questions that have been posed by commissions, business groups, and countless state and local officials: How is the state going to repair its deteriorating transportation infrastructure, and how can the state get more money to do what is needed? O’Malley anticipates the new sales tax could raise up to $613 million a year.
“What we all know is that we’re all going to pay more,” O’Malley told reporters Wednesday.
“This legislation will allow us to support 7,500 new jobs building needed roads, bridges, and public transit throughout our State,” O’Malley said in a written statement. “Maryland has some of the worst traffic in America, and with a growing population and aging infrastructure, we must address these needs today, so our children are not left with a failing transportation system tomorrow.”
“The opponents are many, but the truth is a stubborn thing,” O’Malley said.
Phased in over three years
Currently, motorists pay a flat 23.5-cent gas tax. The new tax would be phased in over three years, with taxes going up 2% each year.
According to a written statement from the governor’s office, sales tax would be applied to the retail price of motor fuel, minus federal and state taxes. So if the retail price of a gallon of gas is $3.49, then nearly 42 cents – 18.4 cents in federal taxes and 23.5 cents in state taxes – get subtracted. Then, the 6% sales tax is applied to the remaining $3.07 – making the new tax about 18.4 cents. Documents from O’Malley’s office say this will be an increase of about 6 cents per gallon a year.
The average retail price of motor fuel will be calculated by the Comptroller’s Office every six months, based on prices for the previous half year.
A motorist driving 10,000 miles per year in a car getting 20 miles per gallon would pay an additional $90 per year.
Restoring trust in transportation funds
The revenues would go into the transportation trust fund, and the bill includes provisions to make sure they would not leave there unless absolutely necessary. Under O’Malley’s legislation, transfers could only happen if the General Assembly enacts a specific bill to move the funds; it could not be part of a larger bill with different provisions, the way the Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act has been used each year to move money around.
Any transfer of transportation trust funds would have to be passed by a three-fifths of the committees in each house where the bill is assigned. The funds could also be used if the governor declares a state of emergency as the result of a catastrophe.
According to documents from O’Malley’s office, funds could only be taken from the trust fund if there is an automatic repayment provision.
All these provisions are far less stringent than proposed by 22 senators in a constitutional amendment for a lockbox that would make it even harder to transfer money away from transportation.
County aid increased, brakes for inflation added
The proposal also restores some highway user revenues to the counties and municipalities that have seen most of the money they use for local roads taken by the state. Local governments would eventually get 20% of the new revenues generated by the gas sales tax. That would give them about 40% of the funds they had been receiving four years ago.
The proposal also includes a way to stop tax increases in the case of drastic spikes in gas prices. In the three years of slow implementation, if gas prices increase more than 15% in a year, then the 2% tax increase will not be applied.
This provision expires after the fully 6% tax is being collected.
According to documents from the governor’s office, the bill also creates a workgroup to study and make recommendations on regional transit finance authorities to bring more funding to support major transit projects.
No more kicking the can
As he has spoken about this proposal in recent weeks, O’Malley has bracketed the tax hike by explaining why it is needed. Average commutes are up, 106 bridges need to be upgraded, and the 23.5-cent gas tax hasn’t been raised since 1992.
Accompanying the explanation of O’Malley’s proposal are a webpage with graphics showing the state’s transit needs and a three-minute video where he talks about improving infrastructure.
“We can’t keep kicking the can down the road. There’s too much traffic ahead, even for a can,” O’Malley said in the video.
GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY INTRODUCES THE MARYLAND TRANSPORTATION FINANCING AND
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT ACT OF 2012
Legislation would support an estimated 7,500 new jobs, includes “braking
mechanism” for consumers and stronger protections for the Transportation Trust
Fund
ANNAPOLIS, MD (February 14, 2012) – Governor Martin O’Malley today officially
submitted to the General Assembly the Maryland Transportation Financing and
Infrastructure Investment Act of 2012, a bill that seeks to address the State’s
transportation infrastructure needs.
“To create jobs, a modern economy requires modern investments. This legislation
will allow us to support 7,500 new jobs building needed roads, bridges, and
public transit throughout our State,” said Governor O’Malley. “Maryland has some
of the worst traffic in America, and with a growing population and aging
infrastructure, we must address these needs today, so our children are not left
with a failing transportation system tomorrow. If we are going to protect our
recent progress and move our State forward, we have to be honest about the
choices we face, and though it is a difficult choice to make, no one will do
this for us, except for us.”
This bill works in conjunction with the Administration’s proposed FY 2013
budget, which supports 52,000 jobs alone in the capital budget—focusing on
a
balanced approach of reductions, revenues and investment to create jobs,
innovate and rebuild Maryland’s infrastructure.
The proposed legislation phases in a six percent sales tax on motor fuel at two
percent each year for three years that will generate an additional $613 million
in revenue to address Maryland’s urgent transportation infrastructure needs and
support an estimated 7,500 jobs for Maryland families. The sales tax would be
applied to the retail price of motor fuel minus any federal and state taxes. An
average retail price of motor fuel will be calculated by the Comptroller's
Office every six months based on the average of the prior six months of actual
prices of regular unleaded gasoline.
The Governor’s legislation includes a “braking mechanism” that will temporarily
cease the phasing of the tax for consumers in the event of a dramatic spike in
the price of gasoline. If the price of gasoline in year one were to increase by
more than 15 percent over the prior year, the rate in year two would remain at 2
percent. This test will be calculated in each subsequent year until the full
rate of 6 percent can be applied.
Over the course of these recessionary times, local revenue funds have been
reduced; this legislation restores transportation aid to local governments. When
fully-phased in and combined with Highway User Revenues, the revenue generated
from the application of the sales tax will restore both municipalities and
Baltimore City to approximately 71 percent of their 2008 funding levels and will
restore the Counties to nearly half (42 percent) of their 2008 funding level.
The bill also contains stronger protections for the Transportation Trust Fund,
including automatic repayment of transfers from the Fund; using the Treasurer’s
guidance on the potential impact of the State’s credit rating before transfers
occur; and a repayment plan with specific payback provisions provided for in the
bill if there is an emergency.
In accordance with the recommendation of the Blue Ribbon Commission on
Transportation Funding, the bill also proposes the Regional Transit Financing
Authority Study, which creates a workgroup to study and make recommendations on
regional transit financing authorities to bring in additional funding to support
major transit projects. Additionally, the proposal includes a two-dollar
increase in the registration surcharge for the Maryland Emergency Medical
Systems Operations Fund to support first responders and emergency medical
services in the State.
The Governor added, “These challenges have no easy solutions but we do have the
power to make better decisions today, decisions that in the long term will
actually cost us less. But we can’t keep kicking the can down the road.”
To see the cost of putting off tomorrow what we can do today for Maryland’s
infrastructure, click here.