Margaret Anderson Kelliher: The gas tax fixes roads -- responsibly

The alternatives are borrowing or letting things crumble. Or both.

By MARGARET ANDERSON KELLIHER

Last update: April 4, 2008 - 6:24 PM

An interesting thing happened April Fools' Day at many gas stations: The price at the pump actually dropped, locally and across the state. Keep in mind that this was the day Minnesota actually added to the gas tax for the first time in 20 years.

By now, we are all too well aware of the volatile nature of global energy markets. Threats from world leaders made thousands of miles away or a hurricane closer to home can cause the price of oil to reach new records. More recently, the weakening dollar has pushed it up over $100 a barrel. Through it all, the oil companies continue to pump record profits. They made $123 billion just last year, not counting billions more in federal tax breaks.

While this continues year after year, states are struggling to find money to keep roads from crumbling. Borrowing has become a popular alternative to the gas tax, which is constitutionally dedicated to pay for roads and bridges. Here in Minnesota, the debt on the highway fund has grown by 650 percent in just the past five years. Our tax dollars are being diverted to pay off that debt instead of being used to fix roads and bridges.

There is no reason why our roads should fall apart before we pay for them. That is why DFL lawmakers have always favored a pay-as-you-go approach. It is the fiscally moderate approach that won the support of business, agriculture, labor and other groups across the state.

This spring, Minnesotans will see highway crews finally going to work on long-neglected stretches of road. Our state will finally have the resources to replace major structures like the St. Cloud bridge that was suddenly closed due to safety concerns.

Republicans and Democrats now seem to agree that Minnesotans voted for change in 2006. They voted to invest in our schools, not for more cuts. They want affordable health care to become a reality and not just a slogan. Most important, they voted to end partisan gridlock, and they expect their elected officials to work together on the state's most-pressing challenges.

The decision to raise the gas tax was a bipartisan effort to fix roads and bridges near you.

Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, is speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. This is a counterpoint to an article by Rep. Tom Emmer that appeared April 1.

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