A 10-cent gas-tax hike or 12? Panel looks for a compromise
A proposal to increase the state’s gas tax is before a committee of state representatives and senators who are trying to work out a compromise between differing versions of the bill.
The panel, which met for the first time Wednesday, plans to meet again Thursday.
“We all have the same goal, and that goal is better roads in South Carolina, and a more efficient and effective way to pay for them,” said S.C. House Majority Leader Gary Simrill, R-York. “We will be able to hammer out a compromise that drivers in South Carolina will be proud of.”
Rather than send the gas-tax proposal to a House-Senate conference committee, seven S.C. House Democrats voted Wednesday to accept the Senate’s plan.
That plan includes automatic increases in the gas tax to account for inflation. It also includes tuition tax credits and other tax rebates to offset increased driving fees, which will help pay to repair the state’s crumbling roads.
State Rep. Russell Ott, D-Calhoun, expressed concern that sending the roads bill to the conference committee could kill it.
The Senate’s plan would increase the gas tax by 12 cents a gallon. It also would raise some driving fees and enact others, eventually raising up to $800 million a year. But some of that increased revenue would be offset by tax cuts that could cost the state $655 million, according to estimates. Those cuts would be paid for with a combination of road money, state budget money and state savings.
However, the Senate’s proposed tax cuts would take away general fund dollars that now pay for other state services, including law enforcement, said House budget chairman Brian White, R-Anderson. “We’re fixing one problem and causing another.”
The majority of representatives — 107 — opposed the Senate plan, insisting on the House’s version of the bill. That proposal — increasing the gas tax by 10 cents a gallon — would raise some driving fees and enact others, raising roughly $500 million a year.
Simrill, the House bill’s sponsor; White; and House Minority Leader Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland; are on the House-Senate conference committee with Sens. Paul Campbell, R-Berkeley; Vincent Sheheen, D-Kershaw; and Ross Turner, R-Greenville.
Cassie Cope: 803-771-8657, @cassielcope
How the 2 gas-tax proposals differ
A conference committee of S.C. House members and senators began trying to work out a compromise Wednesday between two competing gas-tax increases. Among the differences are:
12 cents or 10 cents?
▪ Senate: A 12 cent-a-gallon gas-tax hike over six years; eventually, increases would be tied to inflation, capped at 2 percent a year
▪ House: 10 cent-a-gallon hike over five years; no ties to inflation
Tax credits
▪ Senate: Plan offers tax rebates for added gas-tax costs, income tax credits, and tuition tax credits
▪ House: No tax credits
Driver’s license fee
▪ Senate: Would increase driver’s license fees to $40 for an eight-year license or $25 for a five-year license; drivers now pay $12.50 for a five-year license
▪ House: No added driver’s license fee
Sales tax cap
▪ Senate: The cap on sales taxes on a car would increase to $600; it now is $300
▪ House: The cap on sales taxes on a car would increase to $500
New S.C. resident vehicle fee
▪ House: $250 one-time fee if a new S.C. resident registers a vehicle in South Carolina
▪ Senate: $600 one-time fee if a new S.C. resident registers a vehicle in South Carolina
Both plans include:
▪ An added $16 fee every two years to register a vehicle
▪ A new $60 fee every two years on hybrid vehicles
▪ A new $120 fee every two years on electric vehicles
This story was originally published May 3, 2017 at 1:20 PM with the headline "A 10-cent gas-tax hike or 12? Panel looks for a compromise."