Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-04
HIGHWAY OFFICERS
AWAIT SESSIONS
az State Legislatures Soon
viii Consider Road
work.

Within so days AZ State Legislatures
will be in session and highway ConStruc-
ton will come up for early discussion
and legislative action as means Of Gre
ating more employment, as well as meet
ing the public needs for more roads
Already the stakes have been set by
the American Association of State High
way Oficials and six phases of highway
work will be presented for action.
THE determining factor in levying
motor license fees" according to W. @.
Markham, executive secretary of the
Highway Officials Association, should
not exceed two elements. Horsepower
and gross weight or net weight arc the
factors most commonly used, yet the re-
ceipts now vary all the way from $5.31
per car to $28.42.
State Funds.
Primarily, motor fees are State
funds and should be expended upon
State roads only. There is some further
legislation needed along this line.
Receipts from gasoline taxes should
at all times be used exclusively for road
purposes, and it is highly question: BILE
whether a hign gas tax should attempt
to displace reasonable motor license
fee.
While it is admitted that there comes
time in the road building of a State
when State aid to counties or cities is
equitable no State funds should be al
lotted to a political subdivision without
State supervision in the expenditure of
such funds. There are cases on record
now" said Mr.. Markham, where even
townships are given funds to use with
out State supervision"
Here at this point is an obvious dan
ger of waste. The object of the whole
road-building program, from the great
interstate system down to the least i'm
portant Of township roads, has been to
apply sound methods in construction as
traffic needs might warrant in order
that the longest and best USES of capital
invested in highways might be obtained.
To closely supervise the work on one
section and place no supervisory re-
StrictionS on another would be an 1nVi-
tatlon to waste Against this danger,
State highway officials are hoping to
lend their influence to the passage of
proper legislation.
In some States, in the opinion of high
way ofhcials, refunds on the gasoline
tax are too large, and this they hope to
aid in correcting.
View of Department.
In the collection of highway funds. it
is the view of State highway depart
ments that revenue derived from motor
license fees and gasoline taxes should
be received monthly. Several States are
now receiving these funds quarterly and
in three States the payments into the
highway treasures are made semi
annually.
While much has been accomplished in
previous sessions of the Congress and
State Assemblies on the toll bridge
question. this is still vital point and
further legislation is greatly needed in
many States.
These and other subjects connected
with highway work are matters to which
State highway officials are giving much
study in order that their particular
fields of endeayor may be able to abb
sorb, in highly practical and profit
able way, as much labor as possible. at
the same time expanding the transport
tation facilities of the country upon a
sound and profitable basis. One of their
principal detectives is to keep the road
dollar where it belongs" in building out
toward farming areas and enlarging
State systems by taking in more and
more of county and township mileage
as the work advances.
TWO hundred and ten thousand tons
Of lead 60 into storage batteries an
nually