New Michigan road funding deal declined

Lawmakers are working on a $1.2 billion plan that could include a boost in fuel taxes and vehicles fees along with shifting money from other spending priorities.

After a brief power outage and a lunch break, House Republican leaders were in caucus for a few hours before coming back in to vote on the Senate’s version of road funding bills.

State House Democrats want to protect Michigan’s prevailing wage law as part of a road funding deal.

Now on the table is a plan to hike the gas tax and vehicle registration fees to raise roughly $600 million in new revenue.

“He has expressed some concerns that we have to be really careful to identify how we get to the $600 million”, Snyder spokeswoman Sara Wurfel said Wednesday night. “But I don’t think the ballot proposal was a vote that said they don’t want any tax increase”. But cobbling enough votes for higher gasoline taxes will be hard.

“We’re not going to go along with any kind of Band-Aid approach that isn’t a permanent, sustainable fix to our roads”, House Minority Leader Tim Greimel said.

“Unfortunately, our negotiations have been a bit derailed in other things that are not roads”, House Speaker Kevin Cotter said. “Safe, quality roads is an important issue that stands on its own merits”.

Specifics have not been worked out, though legislators have talked about a 5-cents-a-gallon gas tax increase.

The discussions come amid a sex scandal involving Republican Reps.

“It’s still very much in consideration”.