Thread: Gov. Brown Wants $52 Billion Tax Increase to Fix Transportation

Gov. Brown Wants $52 Billion Tax Increase to Fix Transportation



31 Mar 2017

Gov. Jerry Brown wants the Democrat-controlled state legislature to hike unpopular registration fees and fuel excise taxes by $5.2 billion a year to fix transportation over the next decade — after years of diverting $1.5 billion in transportation infrastructure taxes to subsidize California’s General Fund bond payments.

Despite Californians paying the highest sales and income taxes and the second highest gas taxes in the nation, Gov. Brown wants to raise the excise tax on distributors of fuel by 67 percent — from $.18 per gallon to $.30 per gallon — and the annual vehicle registration fees by $25 for the next decade, according to SFGate. The equivalent cost per gallon of the combined taxes would jump to over $.88.

Commercial vehicles would be hit harder, with the excise taxes on diesel spiking from 20 cents to 36 cents a gallon, and diesel sales tax jumping from 1.75 percent to 5.75 percent. Beginning in 2020, even hybrid and electric cars would be socked with $100 a year fee.

California’s transportation infrastructure consists of 50,000 lane miles of highways; 9 toll bridges; 12,000 other bridges,;11 million square feet of Department of Transportation offices; maintenance shops; 170 Department of Motor Vehicles offices; and 102 California Highway Patrol offices; according to the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office.

Collection of gas and excise taxes and registration fees used to pay for all transportation spending. But after the flood of cash from voters approving the $20 billion Proposition 1B transportation bond in 2006 and the $10 billion Proposition 1A high–speed rail bond in 2008, the legislature started diverting about 18 percent of transportation revenues each year to fund un-related state general obligation bond interest and principal payments.

The National Transportation Group, which tracks national and local transportation spending, estimates that California’s abysmal infrastructure spending now costs state drivers an extra $56.3 billion a year in congestion, safety, and vehicle operating costs.

Brown claims the new spending bill will only costs each Californian in the state about $10 a month, but that works out to about $500 a month for a family of four. Under state law, to pass such regressive and very unpopular taxes, Brown will need every vote from the state’s two-thirds Democrat majorities in both legislative branches.

To cajole liberals into voting for spending $30 billion on roads and $4 billion for bridge repair, Brown is offering $7.5 billion for public transportation, $1 billion walking and bicycle paths, $2.5 billion to reduce major city road congestion, and $275 million for intercity-transit expansions, according to SFGate.

Democrats still remember that Gov. Gray Davis was recalled for tripling vehicle registration fees in 2003, opening the door for Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger to become governor. The Terminator’s first action as governor was to rescind the registration fee increase.

http://www.breitbart.com/california/...ransportation/

3/29/17

California would increase fuel taxes under $52 billion road repair plan

Despite Californians paying the highest sales and income taxes and the second highest gas taxes in the nation, Gov. Brown wants to raise the excise tax on distributors of fuel by 67 percent — from $.18 per gallon to $.30 per gallon — and the annual vehicle registration fees by $25 for the next decade,according to SFGate. The equivalent cost per gallon of the combined taxes would jump to over $.88.

Wow, Californians must really like their taxes. If not, why do they keep handing control of their state over to boobs like this? Guess this is more evidence that points to the excessive costs of sustaining a large illegal immigrant population.

Of course all ALIPAC members from California are exempt from my comment because I sure none of them voted for or support Gov. Brown.

The roads, highways and bridges must be fixed.

We can use CA. tax money to do that

or like other states we could put out our hands for federal taxpayer money.

We would prefer to pay for the repairs ourselves

but we'll use federal taxpayer money if you insist.

Isn't one of the main reasons we pay taxes is for infrastructure? On and on it goes....will never be enough.

Originally Posted by Jean

Isn't one of the main reasons we pay taxes is for infrastructure? On and on it goes....will never be enough.

How Are Federal Taxes Spent?

Updated for Tax Year 2016

---

OVERVIEW

All citizens must pay taxes. How are these federal taxes being spent?

---

All citizens must pay taxes, and by doing so, contribute their fair share to the health of the government and national economy.

The federal taxes you pay are used by the government to invest in technology and education, and to provide goods and services for the benefit of the American people.

The three biggest categories of expenditures are:

• Major health programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid
• Social security
• Defense and security

Interest on the national debt and various safety net programs such as low-income assistance comprise a sizable chunk of national expenditures, while other categories such as transportation and infrastructure spending round out the government budget.


Defense and security

Defense and security typically constitutes a significant portion of government expenditures, although the amounts change annually along with the rest of the budget.

Defense and security spending is considered a discretionary portion of the federal budget. Spending in this category includes Department of Defense and Homeland Security Agency expenses.

For the fiscal 2014 budget, defense spending equaled $620.6 billion, or approximately 18 percent of the federal budget.


Social Security

Payments for the Social Security system constituted about 23 percent of the federal budget in the 2014 fiscal year, with expenditures of about $857.3 billion. The Social Security system provides retirement and survivors' benefits along with disability payments and is categorized as a mandatory portion of the federal budget.


Major health programs

The major health programs in the federal budget are Medicare, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

About two-thirds of the federal health program budget goes to Medicare, as Medicaid and the CHIP require matching payments from individual states. For the 2014 budget year, about 25 percent of the federal budget goes towards these health programs.


Safety net programs

Safety net programs typically constitute about 14 percent of the federal budget. This category includes all aid programs for low- and mid-income families that are not a part of Social Security or the major health programs.

Examples include:

• Unemployment insurance
• Food stamps
• Low-income housing assistance
• Programs for abused and neglected children

Interest on the national debt

Interest on the national debt will total about $223 billion according to the 2014 federal budget, or about 6 percent of total expenditures.


Other expenditures

Approximately 20 percent of the federal budget goes into other categories of spending. The largest of these sub-categories, at about 7 percent of the budget, is spending on benefits for federal retirees and veterans.

Remaining expenses include scientific and medical research, transportation and infrastructure spending, education, non-security international spending and all other categories.

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tool.../INF14246.html

Originally Posted by Jean

Isn't one of the main reasons we pay taxes is for infrastructure? On and on it goes....will never be enough.

Jerry Brown funnels the money to pay for medical, education and welfare for illegal immigrants.

The tax money never goes to road infrastructure, all the roads are a mess!

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

The roads, highways and bridges must be fixed.

We can use CA. tax money to do that

or like other states we could put out our hands for federal taxpayer money.

We would prefer to pay for the repairs ourselves

but we'll use federal taxpayer money if you insist.

How is this for a novel idea ........ just roll up the illegal alien red carpet and place a "please keep out" sign on the front door?

To me it sounds like the good citizens of California are already overburdened with more than their fair share where taxes are concerned. Any argument to support the tax increase is wasted on me while the state continuously acts to subsidize the support of millions of illegal aliens.

City street repairs are paid for by the cities.
County road and bridge repairs are paid for by the counties.
State roads, highways and bridges are paid by the states.
Federal highways and bridges are paid for by the federal government.
Sometimes cities can get some funds from the county or state.
Sometimes the county can get some funds from the state or feds.
Often the states can get funds from the feds.
Cities, counties, states and the federal government all get their money from the taxpayers.
Cities, counties and states can NOT deport illegal aliens.
Only the federal government can deport people.
Looks like the feds need to get busy and help all of the states, counties and cities with this problem that the feds created when they didn't control the border.

Originally Posted by MW

How is this for a novel idea ........ just roll up the illegal alien red carpet and place a "please keep out" sign on the front door?

To me it sounds like the good citizens of California are already overburdened with more than their fair share where taxes are concerned. Any argument to support the tax increase is wasted on me while the state continuously acts to subsidize the support of millions of illegal aliens.

The illegal aliens vote in the millions and they are the ones that keep voting for tax increases
because they know they are not the ones paying the tax.

They need the citizens to pay more taxes so they can get freebies.