Gas tax

==Background==
* PA collect $.31 per gallon of gas.
* PA is the 8th highest in the nation in terms of gas tax. 
* Every 1 cent of the federal gasoline-diesel fuel tax generates about $1.1 billion a year in revenue to plow into Federal Highway Administration programs. 
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* State Senator Sean Logan (as of April, 2006) wants the state of Pennsylvania to suspend its gasoline tax to help ease the high gas prices (hitting $3.00 per gallon at the pump for regular unleaded). Logan, of Monroeville, says he'll introduce a bill to suspend the 31 cent per gallon tax until October 31, 2006.
* Sam Berninger, sam@samintheburgh.com, wrote in 2005:
:"The way to fix Philadelphia and Pittsburgh's mass-transit problems is not raising taxes on everyone and using the money to subsidize inefficient, corrupt bureaucracies," High said. "Rather than looking to the rest of the state to bail them out again, Philly and Pittsburgh ought to first reform (or privatize) their mass transit companies - just as Harrisburg needs to reform its job-killing laws."
* Gas Windfall Tax from Libertarians and US Senate Candidate, Tom Martin, from April 2006
* Gas-tax-plank-Brightbill, May 2006 from opponent, Mike Folmer
==History==
In 2005, Pennsylvania considered making changes to the gas tax.
State House Majority Leader, Sam Smith, R, was saying the odds of a hike in the tax were "better than 50-50." Stephen MacNett, general counsel to the Senate's GOP majority, said the tax increase was almost certain.
* The gas tax went up due to an automatic increase of 30 cents a gallon on January 1, 2005. More, beyond the automatic increase, is pending.
* Pennsylvania's gas tax is the second-highest in the nation, behind Rhode Island's 31 cents per gallon. 
* Forbes Magazine ranked PA 45 out of 50 in state-by-state economic freedom. 
* Raising the state tax on gasoline makes PA less business friendly, and less attractive to out-of-state companies.
* The Republican chairman of the House Transportation Committee, State Rep. Rick Geist, has endorsed Democrat Sen. Vincent Fumo's plan to increase real estate taxes rather than the gas tax. But that approach is just as faulty as raising the gas tax.
==Links==
===Media===
* Political Posturing on Gas Prices Mostly Hot Air from Fox in May, 2006.
:
:Three gas station owners report for their first day in prison. The prison guard asks one of them, "What are you in for?" He replies, "The government says I charged customers more for my gasoline than other gas stations. I'm in for price gouging."
:The guard looks at the second man. "And you?" He answers, "I charged less for my gasoline than everyone else. I'm in for anti-competitive pricing."
:The guard looks to the third. "And you?" He shrugs. "I charged the same price for my gasoline as all the other gas stations. I'm in for collusion."
category: flow category: transportation