Tax hike for roads faces uphill climb

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A Senate plan to incrementally boost the state's gas tax by 41 percent faces opposition from Gov. Mark Sanford and a less-than-friendly assessment by House Speaker David Wilkins of Greenville.

The legislation will be introduced today with bipartisan support by Sens. Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, and John Land III, D-Manning.

Land said they will propose adding 7 cents to South Carolina's 16.8-cents-per-gallon gas tax, spread over a period of years. Increases would kick in only when the price of gas at the pump is under $2, Land said.

"We need this money; our roads are falling apart and we're getting behind. And if we don't do something quickly, we're not going to be able to pull out of this thing," Land said.

The legislation would have to be approved by the full Senate, accepted by the House and signed into law by Sanford, and he said Tuesday in Greenville he doesn't like the notion.

Sanford said he's "against any increase in the gas tax without reform" of the Transportation Department, a huge agency outside the governor's control. He has advocated higher gas taxes in the past, but that was to cover the cost of rolling back the state income tax.

The Leatherman-Land proposal could be dead on arrival in the House. "I don't believe it will be received with open arms," Wilkins said.

"My instincts tell me that with gas prices going sky-high these days, I just do not believe there would be an appetite in the House to add to the burden of the taxpayers."

But Rep. Brenda Lee, D-Spartanburg, said the plan is worthy of consideration.

"We need some help," she said. "We're going to have to bite the bullet before roads deteriorate even more and growth pressures require new ones at even greater expense."

Land said the state can't afford to wait any longer to generate additional money to build roads to meet growth and repair those crumbling under more traffic and long-deferred maintenance.

Every one-cent increase in the gas tax generates $22 million in revenue, Land said.

Four states have lower gasoline taxes than South Carolina, according to the American Petroleum Institute. They are Alaska, 8 cents per gallon lower; Georgia, 12.2 cents; Wyoming, 14 cents; and New Jersey, 14.5 cents.

North Carolina's tax is 22.4 cents, just under the U.S. average of 23.6 cents. Hawaii has highest tax, at 35.1 cents per gallon.

Federal taxes add another 18.4 cents per gallon at the pump.

Leatherman chairs the budget-writing Finance Committee, and Land is one of its senior Democrats.

Land said the proposal would be attached as an amendment to a House-passed tax bill when a Finance subcommittee meets this morning. Under the state Constitution, only the House can initiate tax bills.

Many of the state's old farm-to-market roads have become heavily traveled suburban arteries carrying cars that highway engineers of that era never envisioned, both in size and number. These secondary roads don't qualify for federal matching funds.

Much of the federal money that is received must by law must be spent on new construction rather than maintenance.

For major projects, needs continue to exceed resources.

The State Infrastructure Bank, for example, is facing requests that exceed available funds by $96 million.