Gas-tax-suspension proposal going nowhere fast

By Jim Davenport

The Associated Press

COLUMBIA - Plans to eliminate the state's gasoline tax for three months this fall are running on empty in the Senate, even though Gov. Mark Sanford tried to rally support for the idea Tuesday.

Even some who like the idea of eliminating the state's 16.8 cent-a-gallon tax don't want to do it between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 because of the November elections.

"In Louisiana, we call that vote-buying," said Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston and a New Orleans native.

"It's a political ploy to get votes out in November," said Sen. Jake Knotts, R-West Columbia.

Ford introduced a resolution that would have cut the tax from July through September and tried to get the Senate to put it on a fast track for passage.

But Senate Finance Committee Chairman Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, objected. Leatherman says there's no guarantee the tax break would ever reach consumers.

It's a sentiment that Leatherman will carry into a budget conference committee that begins meeting Wednesday.

The House passed a plan for the gas tax break in its final version of the budget last week. But Leatherman and at least one of the two other senators on that conference committee would have to agree to keep it in the state's $6.5 billion spending plan.

Supporters say growth in state revenue from a surging economy will pay for the break. "The big spenders in the Senate can play with the numbers until they're blue in the face," Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer said. "The fact is this budget doesn't return any new dollars to the people of this state despite nearly a billion dollars in new revenue."

Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Greg Ryberg, R-Aiken, made his fortune selling gas through a convenience store chain. He said retailers can be trusted to pass on the savings. 'There's not going to be any adverse impact," said Ryberg, a candidate for state treasurer. "That's your friends back home, the retailer."

Ryberg was one of five senators who showed up to support Sanford's plan to suspend the tax between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

Senate Minority Leader John Land, D-Manning, says there is no guarantee that economic growth will make up the difference and doesn't like the idea of lifting the tax and then letting it fall back in place.