On Friday’s broadcast of Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal,” State Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) argued for more than a gas tax by itself to find infrastructure.
Singleton told APTV’s Don Dailey other states supplemented a gas tax for road and bridge construction. He mentioned the lottery as a possibility.
The Greene County Democrat added gas taxes disproportionately impact rural areas.
“The thing is, I don’t know what the bill is,” Singleton said. “And I don’t know what the bill will look like at this point in time because they’re telling us it’s not drafted. But the one thing I will say – I looked at Mississippi and other states, and how they were able to be innovative, and not just hitting the taxpayers at the gas tank all at one time. Mississippi involved a lottery in order to pay for roads and bridges. That was the one way in terms of finding other funding mechanisms outside of just going to the tank and just hitting the constituency at the tank. Because when I look at my district, I see some of the rural areas.”
“Gas is already five cents higher than it may be in Birmingham, Tuscaloosa or Montgomery or some other areas. And to hit my people with another five cents in rural poverty-stricken areas – they won’t even have a car to buy gas to ride on the good roads. And so, those are the things we have to balance ourselves out with to make sure find some other innovative ways to be able to fund those roads and bridges without hitting the consumer right at the tank all at once,” he added.
@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University, the editor of Breitbart TV and host of “The Jeff Poor Show” from 2-5 p.m. on WVNN in Huntsville.
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