Gas tax hike proposed in the House

A House lawmaker has proposed raising the state's gas tax by a nickle a gallon, in exchange for eliminating the sales tax on cars.
The proposal was offered by Rep. Rex Rice during debate on a bill to use some car sales tax revenue to pay for road improvements.
The House Ways and Means committee adjourned without voting on the proposal. They will take it up again later today.

Comments

[jonathan haselden]

what a brilliant idea

[Danny Wells]

Dumb idea when gas is already so expensive

[kevin mcclure]

Genius. Because gas isn't expensive enough. Let's twist the knife a little more.

[Richard]

$33.54 a year at the pump versus $450.00 a year in propert tax, bring it on!

[Jim]

Let's give a tax break to everyone who can afford to buy a new car, while raising taxes on everyone else!

Our General Assembly at work.

How about we eliminate the $300 cap on automobile sales taxes to fund roads? But we couldn't do that because then (gasp) the wealthy would actually have to pay the same sales tax rate everyone else does. Can't have that down here, now can we. That's communism.

[Fidel Castro]

You're right Jim, that is communism!

[M SMOAK]

For years I have advocated exempting the first 5-8000 of a car purchase from tax to help the poor. Tax anything over that as much as is needed to do what ever needs to be done. A gas tax is a step backwards.

[Chad H]

For all those in favor of putting more tax burden on the poor and middle classes, say "I". For those of you who buy $60k cars, don't worry, you'll still only have to pay $300 in sales tax, instead of $3000.

[A Duffie]

Why not eliminate the cap on taxes or have a scale so the more expensive the car the more taxes you pay? Leave the gas tax alone unless you want to consider LOWERING it!!!!

[Carolina Politics]

What another brilliant idea coming from our RINO majority in the State House. After all, it’s not like gas isn’t expensive enough already. Let’s tack on some more to the charge.

[Fidel Castro]

That's right folks, stick it to the rich. Let's reward their ambition and ability to achieve wealth by making them pay it all to the government! The general public can be equally poor and only the politicians will have money because as you all know, all people are equal, but some people are more equal than others.

/sarcasm off

[FairTax Supporter]

Raising the gas tax is a good idea if the target is further reducing property tax burdens. The sale tax on cars should be an entirely separate issue. The state needs to revolutionize the way we tax our citizens and businesses by eliminating all forms of tax tied to ownership or compensation and replace them with taxes of retail goods. The fairtax is the best idea out there that also has broad support. While it's a national agenda item, the model can be adopted by the states as well. Last year's property tax relief was a step in the right direction, but we need to continue in that direction until all of these issues are solved and we're left with an efficient, simple, and broad-based tax system.

BTW - before you tag me as some uber-conservative; I lean Democrat.

[Manly D Breland]

I am on disability,(since 2000) during this time, the idiots in charge have cut us ( in this situation ) several times.
They must want us to starve to death !!!!
Add a sales tax and cut property tax!!
The disabled do not pay tax on the first $ 55,000 on property. Since most of own ( or are paying ) for homes that are valued less that that. therefore we got a sales tax increase with no property tax relief !!
We can't buy a new car, so removing new car tax to add to gas tax would do the same thing.
They did drop sales tax on groceries,
but the gas tax would come into place while driving to get the groceries.
I am 68 years old and learned about swapping a tax for a tax.
when I was about 3 years old, I had a piggie bank and my brother 16 mos. older had a different bank. A neighbor boy about 16 yrs old would get our banks, (we both had over $20.00 each),
He would say lets swap the money. (sound familiar ? ) He would take money from one and put it in the other then shake from the other the same way.
I was showing mine one day when I dropped it. It contained less than
$ 2.00. my parents then broke my brothers and it was the same.
I haven't kept up with this person but I think that he is now a politician !!
This was done right in front of our eyes ! sound familiar ?

[Manly D Breland]

I am on disability,(since 2000) during this time, the idiots in charge have cut us ( in this situation ) several times.
They must want us to starve to death !!!!
Add a sales tax and cut property tax!!
The disabled do not pay tax on the first $ 55,000 on property. Since most of own ( or are paying ) for homes that are valued less that that. therefore we got a sales tax increase with no property tax relief !!
We can't buy a new car, so removing new car tax to add to gas tax would do the same thing.
They did drop sales tax on groceries,
but the gas tax would come into place while driving to get the groceries.
I am 68 years old and learned about swapping a tax for a tax.
when I was about 3 years old, I had a piggie bank and my brother 16 mos. older had a different bank. A neighbor boy about 16 yrs old would get our banks, (we both had over $20.00 each),
He would say lets swap the money. (sound familiar ? ) He would take money from one and put it in the other then shake from the other the same way.
I was showing mine one day when I dropped it. It contained less than
$ 2.00. my parents then broke my brothers and it was the same.
I haven't kept up with this person but I think that he is now a politician !!
This was done right in front of our eyes ! sound familiar ?

[Manly D Breland]

THERE ARE OVER 100 TAXES THAT DID NOT EXIST WHEN MY WIFE AND I MARRIED IN 1960.
WE LIVED FAIRLY WELL ON $ 60.00 PER WEEK, EVEN BOUGHT 1960 IMPALA SPORT COUPE.
$ 1.75 WAS TAKEN FROM MY PAY FOR TAX AND S.S.. AT TAX TIME, I GOT THE $ .75 IN IRS REFUND.
THESE NEW TAXES ARE WHAT IS DESTROYING THE MIDDLE INCOME, AND PUTTING THEM IN THE WELFARE LEVEL.
I SHOULD FOR OFFICE !

[joe]

A fair tax tradeoff is to eliminate the property tax and eliminate the 300 dollar sales tax on vehicles. The vehicle property tax is the biggest ripoff that I've ever seen. The tax on my recent model vehicle, assuming 30,000, is higher than my home property tax. This tax is why South Carolinians hang on to their old vehicles until the 'wheels fall off' and present safety hazards on the streets.

[Common Sense]

Um, instead of simply replacing one tax with another, why doesnt the legislature work on CUTTING taxes altogether. Of course, that will require the associated cuts in spending, which people can't agree on so it wont happen. How about we eliminate all funding for 'special education'; if your child is 'learning disabled', you can pay the extra expenses associated with educating it - don't put the burden on the taxpayers. (Here's a tip: if your child is so 'tarded it cannot tie it's shoe by 2nd grade, chances are it will NEVER be a functioning member of society!) All of these children diagnosed with ADHD? I would guestimate that probably 99% of them are simply brats who received poor parenting and they are now 'learning disabled' because they don't know how to behave in school. Parents are simply giving their children excuses for being failures instead of disciplining them for 'acting out'. Medicaid (as are Medicare and Social Security, but those are federal money pits that need to be shut down) is another huge pit into which we are throwing our tax dollars... if you cannot afford to pay ALL of the expenses associated with having children - dont have them. Wow, thats hard to comprehend, isnt it.... It must be because all of these people keep having children and then expecting the taxpayer to foot the bill for providing medical care. If you can't feed 'em, don't breed 'em. (yes, that's taken from a bumper sticker...)

Back to the original subject: DO NOT replace the property tax with additional gasoline taxes. REFORM government spending and ELIMINATE the property tax without simply shifting it to another tax. If the state legislature does increase the gas tax, its time to get the politicians who vote for it out of office... remember, without your vote, they aren't in the legislature and they cannot make these asinine laws.

[Ron]

If you "trust government" then we might want to consider a gas tax. However the "scumbag" legislators use the gas tax for everthing under the sun or have in the past. Roads are a state responsibility and they've refused to fund road repairs but rather encourage county governments to pass their own sales taxes to fund the repair of state roads. What's wrong with this picture??

[Ron]

Also I agree with what a number of you have said regarding the elimination of sales taxes on cars, but it should go a step further and eliminate all special interest tax breaks. Let's have a freekin "level playing field". Is that too much to ask??

[Tim Ho]

Either the initial report or several who posted comments need a facts check. The report indicated nickel a gallon to remove the SALES tax. I saw nowhere anything about personal property tax.

One commentator wrote of the joy of "making the rich pay" $3,000 in sales tax.

I retired to S.C. knowing nothing of the joys of personal property taxes that go to pay for schools not the roadways my truck used.

It only took a couple of years of $1,500 car property taxes to understand someone considered me too rich and in needing of gouging. I would gladly have paid a one time three grand rather than bleed to death each year. I sold the truck and the retirement boat which garnered three separate personal property tax bills of another $1200 buying well used ten year old van and small 15 year old tin boat. Happy retirement!

Need I add that the truck tax bill was more than two of the current tax bills on this $175,000 house I live in today?

Fair isn't.

[Tim Ho]

Either the initial report or several who posted comments need a facts check. The report indicated nickel a gallon to remove the SALES tax. I saw nowhere anything about personal property tax.

One commentator wrote of the joy of "making the rich pay" $3,000 in sales tax.

I retired to S.C. knowing nothing of the joys of personal property taxes that go to pay for schools not the roadways my truck used.

It only took a couple of years of $1,500 car property taxes to understand someone considered me too rich and in needing of gouging. I would gladly have paid a one time three grand rather than bleed to death each year. I sold the truck and the retirement boat which garnered three separate personal property tax bills of another $1200 buying well used ten year old van and small 15 year old tin boat. Happy retirement!

Need I add that the truck tax bill was more than two of the current tax bills on this $175,000 house I live in today?

Fair isn't.

[ch mueller]

Taxes should be paid by whomever is buying expensive cars, boats, and planes. $300 SC state tax for a $50,000 car is ridiculous-it should be closer to the $2500 that would be the actual amount if there was no cap. If someone can afford a $50,000 car then surely they won't balk at the tax. Why should I have to pay 5% extra on a gallon of gas so Fat Howard can drive a $50,000 SUV and go boating in a $60,000 boat, drive his $150,000 RV around. The burden of tax should be on the owner of those items not on the populace as a whole.

[Ron]

We saw in the immigration legislation a general assembly that apparently of the chamber, for the chamber and by the chamber. In the case of their unwillingness to level the playing field on personal property sales taxes, these bought and paid for lawmakers are of the rich, for the rich and by the rich.

[Ron]

We've got a June primary fast approaching. THROW THE RASCALS OUT!!!

[Joey]

Why don't all of you quit whining and do something about these out of control IDIOTS we have in our State Government!! These FOOLS work for us, we voted them into office and we have the power to FIRE them. But most everybody in this state gripes and moans about them,but come voting day you sit your butts at home. Contact your local IDIOT in office and make your arguments known and if he does not cater to your demands as a citizen FIRE HIM!!!