Washington State Increases the Gas Tax by 7 Cents/Gallon

This increase makes Washington have the highest state gas tax in the country.

Even so, the numbers show that the national average price of gas is still in decline.

However, state authorities find that the increase does have its use; it was part of a series of measures which would see $16 billion collected in revenue from transportation in the following 16 years, to be then used for road infrastructure projects.

The combined tally for state gas taxes is not at 44.5 cents per gallon; the total rises up to 62.9 cents when adding the federal 18.4 cent gas tax. It gone by the Legislature was marked on by the state’s chief during summer 2015.

The Oregonian noted that the tax hike puts Washington in dubious standing, making it the state with the second highest gas tax in the United States.

The increase is the first of a two-step jump to pay for transportation projects across the state.

“Nobody likes to have a tax increase. But we haven’t been as diligent on maintenance and preservation as we’ve needed to be”, Republican Sen.

“If we don’t do it in the next two or three years, those repairs, it’s going to cost us three or four times more”. Another 1.4 billion dollars will be spent on the preservation of the roads and maintenance.

About $1 billion will go to non-highway projects, such as bike paths, pedestrian walkways and transit. House Transportation Committee Chairwoman Judy Clibborn, a Democrat from Mercer Island, said that while the projects will take years, ultimately drivers will see the benefits. Utah, Nebraska, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho and South Dakota have done it too and the decreasing trend has been stopped in North Carolina and Kentucky. A gallon of regular gas cost about $ 2.67 on the 31 of July, which is down by 2 cents compared to last week’s prices.

It is as of yet unknown how this will impact gas prices state-wide exactly, as in Washington taxes are not added directly at the pump but are paid by fuel sellers; though it is nearly certain that they will increase prices in response.