The Senate Transportation committee
is set to make a key change in the gas tax bill that was adopted by the House
several weeks ago. Lawmakers are eyeing the gas
tax as a way to raise new revenue to allow the state to take full advantage of
all federal matching money that’s available.
The House Transportation Committee is set to approve
a plan that would restructure the way the state taxes gasoline. The new plan would help raise
revenue to draw down millions of federal transportation dollars.
A big increase in gasoline
prices over the past month could force legislative leaders to scale back their
plan to raise the state gas tax to help repair roads and bridges.
The
Shumlin Administration is bracing for the possibility that all highway
construction projects in Vermont might have to be suspended this fall. Transportation officials say that’s what will happen if Congress fails to
reauthorize the federal gasoline tax.
Gasoline prices
historically rise during the summer months, but Vermont just added an extra 3.3 cents per gallon with a new
tax assessed to distributors.