State lawmakers to propose 10-cent gas-tax hike
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - House Transportation Committee Chair Judy Clibborn said Monday she will seek a 10-cent-per-gallon increase to the state's gas tax.
The proposed tax hike will be a part of a broader transportation revenue package that the Mercer Island lawmaker and several of her Democratic colleagues on the House Transportation Committee plan to unveil Wednesday.
A gas tax increase would likely face its stiffest resistance in the state Senate, which is controlled by Republicans and two Democrats who crossed the aisle to join them. However, Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom, D-Medina, said last month that he would support a gas-tax hike.
Curtis King, R-Yakima and Tracy Eide, D-Federal Way, co-chairs of the Senate Transportation Committee, did not immediately return calls seeking comment on the proposed tax increase.
Washington's gas tax is 37.5 cents per gallon, which is among the highest in the country.
Last week, a group of more than 40 mayors from around the state, including Mike McGinn of Seattle and Marilyn Strickland of Tacoma, sent a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee and to legislative leaders urging them to pass an 8-cent increase to the gas tax. The mayors said more than $3 billion is needed to maintain roadways and bridges in the state over the next 10 years.
In order to be passed into law, the tax hike would require a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate, or it would have to be passed by a vote of the people.
The proposed tax hike will be a part of a broader transportation revenue package that the Mercer Island lawmaker and several of her Democratic colleagues on the House Transportation Committee plan to unveil Wednesday.
A gas tax increase would likely face its stiffest resistance in the state Senate, which is controlled by Republicans and two Democrats who crossed the aisle to join them. However, Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom, D-Medina, said last month that he would support a gas-tax hike.
Curtis King, R-Yakima and Tracy Eide, D-Federal Way, co-chairs of the Senate Transportation Committee, did not immediately return calls seeking comment on the proposed tax increase.
Washington's gas tax is 37.5 cents per gallon, which is among the highest in the country.
Last week, a group of more than 40 mayors from around the state, including Mike McGinn of Seattle and Marilyn Strickland of Tacoma, sent a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee and to legislative leaders urging them to pass an 8-cent increase to the gas tax. The mayors said more than $3 billion is needed to maintain roadways and bridges in the state over the next 10 years.
In order to be passed into law, the tax hike would require a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate, or it would have to be passed by a vote of the people.
Texas is looking better every day.
Thank goodness there isn't enough losers in the legislature to put a yes stamp on this, and the voters are going to say , HELL no
we are the 6th highest gas tax at 55.9 adding a dime would put us in 3rd place behind California and Hawaii. Â What a joke, the state of washington takes in 2.5 billion per year and they are loosing money WHY POOR MANAGEMENT. Â It's a JOKE
Why stop at 10 cents? Why not 30 or 40 or even a $1. As for whining about not having an income tax "lakeview". There is absolutely no reason that things cannot be run efficiently with the billions that the state takes in. Take away the greedy teacher's unions, mismanaged WDOT screw-ups (cost over-runs), illegal aliens costs, mismanaged WDOT screw-ups (2nd time) and boom you have plenty of money for everything. This state is a disaster. There is NO leadership.
Might be time to think about the electric cars and hybrid plug ins. Electricity is cheap and clean in the PNW. The federal tax rebate for an electric car is something like 7 grand. I would assume there are state rebates too.Â
@lakeview Cheap is relative.Â
Since we are one of only a small handful of states without a progressive income tax, what do you expect?
Just remember the next time that you all freak out over a proposed state income tax (that would affect probably 5-10% of the people reading this) that instead, we will keep raising regressive taxes like this that disproportionately affect middle and lower income families. Â
@lakeview How much of the money I earn do you deserve and why?
@Goodwin  We deserve a lot of money from a lot of people for good schools.  Kids deserve good schools.  We deserve well-funded police departments and fire departments, too.  We also deserve good roads in this fine state of ours.  If you try to do it on the cheap, it shows.
@komoddavis @Goodwin We deserve to have our tax dollars spent wisely - NOT WASTED (see 520 bridge fiasco, for one example of many).
Another punish the middle class tax for commuting to and from work to support their families, commute to school, commute to daycare and grocery shopping. Why is it that our Politicians continue to tax the middle class into poverty! We can also add another 10 cents to everything we puchase because it takes fuel to move goods.
Also, stop calling it a gas as its not a gas, but a fuel.
So 56 cents a gallon isn't enough? Now we are going to 66 cents. More strain on the poor people. Trying to force more people to take the horrible mass transit system. Sure wish we could elect some libertarians.
@Blindman Unfortunately, people that vote for Libertarians only succeed in electing Liberals.
You would think that with all the disgruntled posters here, people would have voted a little different at the polls  last November. I guess they just look at the "D" on their ballot and assume it must be good. Bizarre...
You reap what you sow. Enjoy, until the next election where most of you will vote the same incompetent group into office.
The big question should be is what are they doing with all the money they collect in taxes??? I-5 is still in bad shape going through Federal Way. County roads are a shambles. Metro bus service is a joke. So what are they doing with the money????Â
@Busyhands The powers that be have no real idea where all the money goes because it is not there's. The stupid waterfront tunnel and the disastorous 520 bridge project is behind this push for more and more gas tax money.Â
If Gregoire hadn't given away gas taxes to the Tribes, (who, by the way, are not abiding by the record keeping requirements of that agrement), would this additional hike even be necessary? Â
Stop voting in progressives.
@bigvalley The gas tax is not progressive. It's regressive. Every time the progressives try to pass an income tax, the Republicans freak out and scare people. In the end, you all pay more.Â
Aren't they basically trying to recoup what they are losing from electric and hybrid car owners? Instead of raising the gas tax, why not tax based per mile driven? I'm not sure if electric/hybrid owners already pay a flat fee already, but there has got to be a better way to balance this out. Another gas tax hike is ridiculous.
Create a state tax on received campaign contributions, 47.5 cents on the dollar. See how the politicians and the contributors like it.
@justin The gas tax is per gallon, not per dollar.Â
Yes, I recognize that, but politicians typically do not receive contributions that can be measured in gallons, except maybe a case or two of Scotch.
Now that pot is legal and regulated, won't that generate more money than the state will know what to do with? Wait, hold on, I was temporarily incapacitated, I'm fine now.... As far as the state is concerned, they will never have enough money. This madness has got to STOP!!
The combined fed/state gas tax for Washington state is .55.9 cents.
This means an increase to .65.9. We will pay this at the pump and in the grocery store.
Like the old drug saying 'Just Say No'.
May be the better way to cut expenses first  ?  Starting with lawmakers , authorities and welfare recipients ?  All of you have a better salary , healthcare and pension than I have or would have  but I have no my own budget deficit because I have to plan my budget well . I can't impose  taxes on anybody that is why I  try to spent less than I earn .  Politicians , give up your better life to fix our country's financial crisis . The crisis is  your fault not mine . Do not make me responsible for what I did not do !Â
Well if you raise the gas tax be prepared for a reduction in revenue tax. Â I can't afford to spend my ever shrinking wages on increased gas prices increased grocery costs, and increased cost of living expenses which means I won't have money to spend on things that are defined as being for disposable income because I won't have as much.
Go ahead and raise the gas tax, but eliminate toll roads, and cut the portion that goes to transit by half so the gas taxes can actually be used to fix the roads. I wouldn't mind a higher gas tax, it truly is a 'user fee' that doesn't track a persons whereabouts. I would also stipulate that the higher tax is reversed as soon as tolls appear on our highways.
Also, mandatory auditing and cost-containment measures with project responsibility/liability tied to those managing them would be a requirement too.
I don't know about the rest of you? I cannot afford anothert tax increase, I am barely making it as it is now. Olympia needs to learn how to live within a budget, just as the rest of us have to. This type of mentality needs to STOP!  It's beyond absurd and it's time Olympia wake up and live within their budget and quit giving the shaft to the taxpayers. Wake up Olympia and get with it. I hope this moronic proposal doesn't pass... I need my money going towards food and not some ignorant goverment who has no idea how to live within a budget.
I have a great idea!
How about we just tell all of our employers to make our pay checks out to Washington state?! It's headed that way more and more each day everytime you people vote these idiots into office.
Look, I'm not opposed to tax increases, if it makes sense. But like WAbornnraised said below, the cell phone expenses, personal laundry expenses, and other costs the state incurs by these lawmakers needs to stop. I pay my own cell phone, I pay for everything I use on my own. Maybe if that financial albatross known as Paula Hammond in WSDOT was terminated, I would be more supportive of tax increases, but not until then and other miniscule costs are eliminated.
LOL NO
We already have one of the highest gas taxes in the nation, and I spend about $150/month right now JUST DRIVING BACK AND FORTH TO MY JOB.
How about cutting out those extraneous expenses like cellphones and laundry paid by us taxypayers, like millions of middle class people like myself have to do? That money could go to transportation.
Gas and diesel should cost $8 to $10 a gallon. That way everyone involved from the manufacturing to the taxation end could make some money. It would also wean us off of oil dependency.
It would also wean us off a cliff known as a 3rd World
Where does it end? I'm now unemployed because the state priced my company of 17 years out of business. I cant find work now.They make it so I cant afford to drive a long distance for work. Groceries go up so you cant afford to eat. When does the average Joe get a break? This country cant just run on Doctors, Lawyer, and Politicians alone. Medical and Dental is now just a luxury that the middle class cant even afford anymore. Where is the "CHANGE".
The state can't even budget the money they got.  What makes them think that more money will fix that?  It won't.  It will just mean more bills.  The word BUDGET is a farce when it comes to government.  To them, it only means TAKE MORE.  Heaven forbid they learn how to work with what they have.  There is enough bogus spending in this state that the tax is unnecessary.  Take "Art in Public Places" which is not a necessity.  It is a want.  Why are we required to give up our NEEDS while the state keeps its WANTS?!?!?!
They call themselves leaders. I call them thieves. It's so easy for them to raise our taxes. These are the same people that get their laundry done on the tax payers dollars. They get state owned vehicles to drive with a gas per diem. They get paid a lot of money to raise our taxes that they can write off.
Maybe they could TAX all the bicycles (have them registered yearly) Â and bicyclists to help pay as they too use the roadways and side walks!!
Don't give them any more ideas, they will start taxing Strollers, Skateboards, Scooters, and taxing by the number of wheels so your 3 year old in training wheels will pay double because there are 4 wheels hitting the ground instead of 2.
@Aras I agree. You have to buy tabs and pay taxes to ride a dirtbike offroad. Why are bicycles exempt?
Didn't we just passed a law to lagalize that'll bring in Billions
I will give them full access to my bank account and they can take out what ever they want. Stupid idea. Are they trying to drive people out of this state? They are not going to attract businesses to com to this state with garbage like that.Â
raise gas tax, toll both bridges, put tracking devices on all vehicles to pay per mile they drive. Why waste all the time and money coming up with these bills?  Why not just take out half of my paycheck every other week and call it good?
@Griffey24 You know only half of your paycheck is not nearly enough to satisfy them.
Giving these people more tax dollars is like giving money to a drunk or drug addict.
I donât like gas tax hikes since we already pay far too much for gas. Auto companies are not making a lot of effort to have the cars go farther on a tank of gas. Its kind of sad that my 2001 Honda Civic average MPG is just about the same as a 2013 Civic (not any of the hybrid versions). Your telling me in over a decade they could not have found better ways to increase the MPG. I think if they are going to increase the Gas Tax they need to eliminate any tolls. Or they need to eliminate the gas tax and go only with tolls on certain roadways. I am not for this pay a tax based upon mileage used that has been floated around. However I also believe they need to find some fair way to tax the electric vehicles as they use the roads as well. Frankly I have no idea how to go about doing that in a fair manner. They also need to start allowing more companies bid on road projects and hold them accountable for cost increases or delays. Not have the tax payers be on the hook for a company that cant bid a project correctly.
Here is the problem with why cars are not getting better mileage. EPA implements new standards to CO2 that impacts mileage and cars are getting heavier every year as they add more safety equipment.Â
A BMW 3 series 10 years ago weighed 3,200lbs today my 2011 BMW 3 Series weighs in at 3,600 lbs. Add more weight for safety, add more emmission controls it greatly impacts mileage.
@gastoys
Thank makes sense. However I would think additional technologies and motor improvements would offset the weight and environmental requirements. Might just be wishful thinking on my part. I am certainly not a mechanic with the appropriate background and knowledge.
JUST. SAY. NO.
I propose that the state lawmakers bend over and kiss my butt.