oped: Here we go again...Jerry Brown The Taxman See: http://sharlaslabyrinth.blogspot.com/2015/12/with-dnc-its-all-about-taxesnot.html
By Steve Gorman
LOS
ANGELES (Reuters) - California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law on
Friday a bill to raise gasoline taxes and other transportation-related
fees for the first time in decades in an ambitious $52 billion plan to
repair the state's long-neglected roads and bridges.
The
measure will increase excise taxes on gasoline by 12 cents per gallon,
from the current rate of 28 cents, and on diesel fuel by 20 cents per
gallon over the next 10 years. It will go into effect in November.
The
bill cleared the state legislature three weeks ago, on the strength of a
two-thirds super-majority the Democrats wield in both houses that
allows them to pass new taxes with little or no Republican support.
Republicans
condemned the increases, saying the state's transportation taxes and
fees are already among the highest in the nation. They call the measure
the largest gasoline tax in California's history.
"Californians got a lemon of a gas and car tax hike today," Senate Republican leader Patricia Bates said.
The
average motorist in California, a state renowned for its car culture,
will see transportation costs rise by about $10 a month, the bill's
supporters say.
The governor insisted the pain of higher taxes would be more than offset by economic benefits.
"Safe
and smooth roads make California a better place to live and strengthen
our economy," Brown said. "This legislation will put thousands of people
to work."
Brown,
a Democrat who has governed largely as a fiscal moderate, refused to
back any plan that involved borrowing money to shore up a sagging
transportation system that has gone unrepaired and unexpanded for
decades.
Supporters
say the measure is needed to address a mounting backlog of deferred
maintenance projects, including more than 500 bridges statewide
requiring major repair, most of which are considered structurally
deficient.
The
fuel tax increases, together with higher vehicle registration fees and a
new $100 annual fee on owners of electric-only vehicles, would raise
$5.2 billion a year, all earmarked for road, highway and bridge repairs,
along with mass transit and anti-congestion projects.
To
address concerns that those revenues might end up diverted elsewhere in
the budget, the bill calls for a state constitutional amendment to be
placed on the June 2018 ballot that would, if approved, prohibit
spending the funds on anything but transportation. [oped: Right ...uh huh... sure it will when hell freezes over...old Jerry Brown and his bait and switch tactics at it again..it will go for all the looney left's agenda projects..kick backs to pad their personal portfolios, climate control, gun control, illegal alien welfare & gay everything!]
Supporters
foresee creation of hundreds of thousands of jobs over the next decade,
based on a federal formula that projects gains of some 13,000 jobs for
every $1 billion of investment.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Sandra Maler and Leslie Adler)
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