Press Release – Quadruple Taxation Bill Introduced For Local Roads

Gas taxes, auto registration fees, property taxes and now sales taxes just to fix local roads.

1000 Friends of Wisconsin today slammed a proposal that would require local governments to impose a new tax if they want to maintain local roads, calling the proposal quadruple taxation for road repairs.

The legislation calling for a local one-half cent sales tax option, proposed by Representative Dean Knudson, would mean that Wisconsinites could be paying four separate taxes for local road repairs. Currently, residents pay gasoline axes and auto registration fees to the state that are meant, in part, to be returned to the community as a reimbursement for the costs of local road maintenance. Additionally, nearly 80% of the costs of maintaining local roads are paid through local property taxes since the state has been short-changing communities in reimbursements.

However, because legislators continue to increase spending on freeway expansion projects – mostly in southeastern Wisconsin – there is not nearly enough money left to reimburse local government for local road repairs. Legislators have been unwilling to remedy the problem by either cutting spending on new projects or raising taxes to pay for the roads. A new proposal passes the buck to residents who would have to vote to pay a fourth tax – a local sales tax – just to fund local road maintenance.

“This proposal is unfair to Wisconsin taxpayers. They are already paying gas taxes and auto registration fees to fix local roads but those taxes have been hi-jacked for freeway expansion,” said Steve Hiniker, Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin. “Communities have had to resort to property taxes to pay for nearly 80% of the cost of local road repairs. This new proposal adds a fourth tax – a local sales tax increase that amounts to quadruple taxation.”

“The legislature can easily fix the problem without asking residents to tax themselves again. They can simply cut freeway expansion and send the savings back to the communities where the tax was collected,” concluded Hiniker.

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Contact: Steve Hiniker,
608.259.1000 x105

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