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Most candidates for public office avoid saying the “T-word” – taxes – unless promising to reduce taxes or pledging not to raise taxes. Gov. Dennis Daugaard seems to be wavering from his promise not to increase taxes during his successful 2010 campaign.

Last week, the governor said he would consider raising taxes to maintain and improve South Dakota’s roads and bridges. The Legislature’s Executive Board recently approved a summer study committee on funding for roads and bridges in South Dakota. The special committee will look for ways to fund road and bridge construction and repair. A likely solution could be an increase in the state’s gas tax – now at 18.4 cents per gallon - that would be presented to the 2015 Legislature.

In his weekly column, Gov. Daugaard noted that the state’s gas tax has only about half the purchasing power than it did when the tax was last increased in 1999.

“In the past, I have promised to oppose tax increases, and I have kept that promise,” Daugaard wrote. “As we consider our future transportation needs, however, I want to participate in the discussion without taking any options off the table, including proposals to restore the purchasing power of the gas tax.”

The governor is right that the state’s gas tax doesn’t go as far as it used to. Moreover, as the price of gas increases – today’s gallon of gas costs twice as much as in 2009 – people look for more fuel-efficient vehicles and drive less. Fuel conservation ironically reduces the revenue that governments need to pay for better roads and bridges.

We have generally supported user fees as a funding source. Having highway users pay for infrastructure costs and maintenance through a tax on gasoline is a fair method of raising revenue. Drivers use the roads and bridges, so they should be the ones who pay to build and maintain them.

Improved roads and bridges won’t make drivers happier, though, because increasing the gas tax makes driving more expensive.

The governor’s willingness to consider a gas tax hike puts the “T-word” back on the table. However, we’d like to see what the study committee comes up with as solutions for paying for roads and bridges before endorsing a gas tax increase.

Source-On Request