Re: We Needed A Big Gas Tax Like We Need a Scathing Case of Herpes

ZombyWoof wrote: 
On Tue, 23 Aug 2005 03:14:48 -0400, "Michael Johnson, PE"
<cds@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:


Sorry Patrick, but the last thing we need to do is give the government one more way to yank money from our wallets. They have more ways to do it than we can count right now. They need to REDUCE the taxes they currently have on gas. Gas tax hurts the people that can least afford it the most. The government collects plenty of taxes. They don't need more money, they need to make do with less.


This is a yes & no proposition. While it does in fact hurt those who
can least afford it (minimum wage burger flippers in an area of no
mass transit). Those whom it doesn't affect would go freakin hog
crazy and stick their noses so far into the damn trough there would be
nothing left. 

Already many who need fuel to conduct business (farmers & others) do
not have to pay the taxes on fuel needed to produce certain things in
our economy.  Of course the Military which sucks up a tremendous
amount of fuel and the US Postal Service (Number one consumer of fuel)
already don't pay taxes either.

Even though the prices of crude do have an impact there is also the
issue of the capacity to turn raw crude into fuels.  There hasn't been
a new refinery built in the US in about 30 years while the demand
curve has steadily increased.

Certain taxes on fuel are supposed to go to pay for the infrastructure
to support the use of vehicles, i.e. roads & bridges.  Unfortunately
in many states these taxes go directly into the states general funds
and never do get spent on improving the roads if the roads in my area
are any indicator.

Yes driving a high-performance vehicle to & from work is a royal
blast.  However, it simply isn't required.  The major problem is no
viable mass transit alternative for the majority of the country to get
anywhere.  I can drive the 18 miles to work in 30/40 minutes.  If I
was to take the bus it would be more like 2.5 hours in each direction
and I still have to get to the bus stop.

The answer is out there somewhere, but I doubt that anyone in the US
government is going to come up with it.

Here's a link that gives current gasoline tax rates: http://tinyurl.com/exjpg New York is probably the worst case as they charge over 50 cents a gallon in total state and federal taxes. For EVERY 18 gallon fill-up the driver in New York pays about nine dollars in taxes. At $2.50/gallon that equates to a tax rate of 20%. When gas was $1.75/gallon the tax rate was near 29%. How long do you think it will take the states and the federal governments to get the tax rate, as a percentage, back up to what they were before this last price spike happened? My guess is it won't be long.

If the government wants to reduce our consumption of fuel then they should just ration gasoline and be done with it. That way we won't have them digging in our wallets so deep. Personally, I think fuel should be taxed just like any other commodity. Just apply the state's sales tax rate. Fuel tax is just another way government has found to increase revenue covertly. I don't believe these amounts per gallon tax rates are shown on the pumps. Why do you think that is so? Also, why are they included in the advertised price? If the tax was added on to the purchase like sales tax the public would be forced to know they are getting raped on gas taxes and probably wouldn't stand for it.

The reason I am so passionate about lowering taxes, or at least keeping them stagnant, is that we are taxed at incredible rates when all the local, state and federal taxes are combined. Individually they don't seem so bad but add them up and most of us would be shocked. The thing is that many of these taxes are not based on income so the poor are hit disproportionately hard. Hell, state governments even pray on people through lotteries. Many of the people I see buying those tickets haven't got the income to justify such an extravagant purchase. Do you think the government cares that they are praying on the poor by offering lottery tickets? Granted, no one is forced to by a lottery ticket but I expect more from our elected leaders than to shamelessly take money from people that can't afford it.

One day people will put all this together and the politicians will be held accountable at the ballot box. It is happening gradually right now. Why do you think the Republicans have retained the House, Senate and more often than not the Presidency? The biggest reason is they are the only party that is willing to cut taxes. Even they aren't doing it enough to suit most people. It is happening here where I live at the local level. People can't understand why there property taxes are sky rocketing when inflation isn't. The expenses of the local government aren't increasing 20% a year so why are their local taxes. The average person is starting to see what is being done to them from a tax standpoint. It may take a few more election cycles but I believe there will be a major shift in the public's attitude toward how they are taxed.

Well, I feel better after that rant. :)
.

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