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Gas tax increase hits roadblock
By SAUNDRA AMRHEIN, Times Staff Writer Three county commissioners want to raise the gas tax by 3 cents per gallon. Two want just 1 cent. The difference between them could junk the entire idea of any increase. They need a supermajority, or four of five votes, to approve an increase. During a heated debate Wednesday night at the Historic Pasco County Courthouse, Commissioner Peter Altman made it clear that he wants 3 cents or nothing. A 1-cent increase benefits too few people and raises too little for what the county needs, Altman said. If the commissioners are going to bother pushing for the first gas tax increase since the mid 1980s, they should do it right and make sure everyone benefits, he argued. County attorneys are preparing an ordinance to show commissioners how the additional gas tax could be spent. "If Commissioner (Ted) Schrader will stick with me on this, I'll tell you right now, we can just tell (attorneys) to fold up their tent and don't even bring it back because I'm not going to sit here and talk about one penny and let other areas" go unserved, he said. "It destroys the opportunity for us to get the resources we need in this county. I truly believe that." "I do, too," commission Chairwoman Ann Hildebrand said. On the other side were Commissioners Pat Mulieri and Steve Simon. Simon broached the subject during a part in the meeting where commissioners raise their own concerns. Simon said he received phone calls from constituents about a television news segment where Altman was quoted talking about the proposed 3-cent increase. Simon was disturbed because he thought all the commissioners agreed during a February workshop to move ahead with a 1-cent gas tax increase. But there was no agreement about a 3-cent rise, which he firmly opposes due to rising gasoline prices and worsening conflicts in oil-producing parts of the world. To talk about a 3-cent increase while "the entire Middle East is sitting there one step away from flames is not comfortable for me," Simon said. Schrader said discussion at the last workshop led him to believe that money from a 1-cent increase would be spent on an extra road crew to help keep up with road paving in the central part of the county. Meanwhile, his district, in eastern Pasco, holds the largest share of unimproved roads. "I felt like that in order to get this commissioner to support the additional penny, we needed at least 2 or even 3 cents to be able to address some of the issues in east Pasco County," Schrader said. Mulieri said everyone would benefit from the extra crew because workers would be free to tackle needed road maintenance throughout the county. On Thursday, County Administrator John Gallagher said he still plans in early May to show options on how to spend the money for a 1-cent or a 3-cent increase. After the meeting, Simon criticized Altman for trying to scuttle even the 1-cent increase. "The answer should never be to kill all benefits because you didn't get what you wanted," Simon said. Altman on Thursday said he might support the 1-cent tax if the proceeds could be spread throughout the county to clear up road bottlenecks and traffic safety problems. "I can't see them not getting addressed while we proceed forward to pave more roads to bring more traffic to roads that are already overcrowded," Altman said.
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From today's Pasco Times |
