In 1998, Congress and the President dedicated the entire 18.4 cent gas tax to a Highway Trust Fund and now suddenly claim that critical highway maintenance will go wanting if the gas tax is reduced. Wasted on Federal Highway Pork. But Congress and the President have wasted billions on questionable pork-barrel projects. Get Rid of the Federal Middleman. While Washington appears unable to give up the gas tax, some states, such as Connecticut and New York are talking about reducing their own gas taxes.
States impose gas taxes to pay for highway projects and other needs.
Washington's wasteful spending of federal gas tax revenues points to the need for Americans to demand that Washington get out of the way and do what is fair by giving control of highway programs back to states and local communities. Americans Bear the Costs. Today, many small, fuel-intensive businesses, such as the trucking industry, already are suffering the effects of high oil prices. There are more than 7 million trucks on America's roads today and many companies operate on profit margins of 2 to 4 percent. Recent fuel price increases are wiping away those profit margins.