"We should not, we must not and I will not raise taxes."
- Governor Doyle statement during his 2003 State of the State address.
The American Petroleum Institute reports that as of January 2009, Wisconsin's gas tax of 32.9 cents ranks number eight among all states.
April 1, 2007, Wisconsin's gas tax, one of the highest in the nation, did not automatically increase as it had on April 1 for many previous years. April 1, 2008, Wisconsin's gas tax didn't automatically increase.
Why didn't the gas tax go up automatically as it had in previous years? Taxpayers strenuously complained about the automatic increase, or gas tax indexing, and state legislators and the governor listened.
Under gas tax indexing, every April 1 Wisconsin's gas tax would automatically increase without any vote by the Legislature and without an approving signature by the governor.
During the 2005 legislative session, I co-sponsored Senate Bill 331, which repealed the automatic gas tax increase. The state Senate approved the bill, 20-13, the state Assembly approved the bill, 74-23, and Governor Doyle signed the bill into law.
The issue resonated with an angry public that clearly understood the unfairness of the automatic increase and delivered a loud and clear message to the Legislature that indexing must stop. Taxpayers immediately grasped the reasoning behind the bill to end indexing. Wisconsin's annual gas tax on April 1 without a vote was a cruel April Fool's joke, except this was not a joke.
The incredible outpouring of support to end the automatic increase in the gas tax demonstrated the public was fed up with high taxes and a lack of accountability. The automatic increase in the gas tax was a blatant example of taxation without representation.
Prior to the state Senate's vote on December 6, 2005, to repeal indexing, the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported the automatic gas tax increase had cost taxpayers $3.5 billion over the previous 20 years. Governor Doyle now wants to reverse the repeal of indexing and return to yearly automatic gas tax increases despite his 2003 State of the State statement:
"We should not, we must not and I will not raise taxes."
Last month, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported:
Doyle told the Wisconsin State Journal he wants to resume having the gas tax automatically increase every year.
"The simple fact is that where Wisconsin went, where Republicans took us, is unsustainable for transportation (infrastructure), where you say, that's basically it on the gas tax, regardless of what the costs are and what the needs are," Doyle told the State Journal.
That's a departure from what he said two years ago, when he was running for re-election. Then, Doyle promised not to raise the gas tax during a second term, which runs through 2010.
The timing of Governor Doyle's change of heart is odd. Just when the price of gasoline has fallen to a relatively affordable level, the governor is suggesting motorists get slapped with a tax increase. Doesn't he remember the struggles working families faced with gas was over $4 a gallon?
For those concerned about the effect the elimination of indexing might have on road projects, I submit they may always propose the Legislature take a vote on increasing the gas tax and then defend the reason the tax must go up.
I do not support legislation that calls for reinstating gas tax indexing.
Remember, as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported, the governor promised he would not support raising the gas tax. And don't forget this quote:
"We should not, we must not and I will not raise taxes."
The governor can't just say it. He must mean it and follow through.
- Sen. Mary Lazich, R-New Berlin can be reached at Sen.Lazich@legis.wisconsin.gov, www.senatorlazich.com, Senator Mary Lazich, State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 or 1-800-334-1442.
- Governor Doyle statement during his 2003 State of the State address.
The American Petroleum Institute reports that as of January 2009, Wisconsin's gas tax of 32.9 cents ranks number eight among all states.
April 1, 2007, Wisconsin's gas tax, one of the highest in the nation, did not automatically increase as it had on April 1 for many previous years. April 1, 2008, Wisconsin's gas tax didn't automatically increase.
Why didn't the gas tax go up automatically as it had in previous years? Taxpayers strenuously complained about the automatic increase, or gas tax indexing, and state legislators and the governor listened.
Under gas tax indexing, every April 1 Wisconsin's gas tax would automatically increase without any vote by the Legislature and without an approving signature by the governor.
During the 2005 legislative session, I co-sponsored Senate Bill 331, which repealed the automatic gas tax increase. The state Senate approved the bill, 20-13, the state Assembly approved the bill, 74-23, and Governor Doyle signed the bill into law.
The issue resonated with an angry public that clearly understood the unfairness of the automatic increase and delivered a loud and clear message to the Legislature that indexing must stop. Taxpayers immediately grasped the reasoning behind the bill to end indexing. Wisconsin's annual gas tax on April 1 without a vote was a cruel April Fool's joke, except this was not a joke.
The incredible outpouring of support to end the automatic increase in the gas tax demonstrated the public was fed up with high taxes and a lack of accountability. The automatic increase in the gas tax was a blatant example of taxation without representation.
Prior to the state Senate's vote on December 6, 2005, to repeal indexing, the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported the automatic gas tax increase had cost taxpayers $3.5 billion over the previous 20 years. Governor Doyle now wants to reverse the repeal of indexing and return to yearly automatic gas tax increases despite his 2003 State of the State statement:
"We should not, we must not and I will not raise taxes."
Last month, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported:
Doyle told the Wisconsin State Journal he wants to resume having the gas tax automatically increase every year.
"The simple fact is that where Wisconsin went, where Republicans took us, is unsustainable for transportation (infrastructure), where you say, that's basically it on the gas tax, regardless of what the costs are and what the needs are," Doyle told the State Journal.
That's a departure from what he said two years ago, when he was running for re-election. Then, Doyle promised not to raise the gas tax during a second term, which runs through 2010.
The timing of Governor Doyle's change of heart is odd. Just when the price of gasoline has fallen to a relatively affordable level, the governor is suggesting motorists get slapped with a tax increase. Doesn't he remember the struggles working families faced with gas was over $4 a gallon?
For those concerned about the effect the elimination of indexing might have on road projects, I submit they may always propose the Legislature take a vote on increasing the gas tax and then defend the reason the tax must go up.
I do not support legislation that calls for reinstating gas tax indexing.
Remember, as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported, the governor promised he would not support raising the gas tax. And don't forget this quote:
"We should not, we must not and I will not raise taxes."
The governor can't just say it. He must mean it and follow through.
- Sen. Mary Lazich, R-New Berlin can be reached at Sen.Lazich@legis.wisconsin.gov, www.senatorlazich.com, Senator Mary Lazich, State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 or 1-800-334-1442.
