Letters: Truckers will pass on gas tax to consumers

In his April 10 column “The truth about road repair, funding and taxes,” the S.C. Trucking Association’s J. Richards Todd wrote: “Tea-headist nuttiness, has left us with a system that has been stretched, pasted and patched. Shallow claims and ill-informed rhetoric have caused pervasive misunderstandings and deep mistrust.”

Well I am one of those tea-head nuts who does understand and has deep mistrust of people like Mr. Todd. He preached the virtues of the tax but failed to explain how it will affect the average citizen. The trucking industry will not eat the cost; it will be passed on in higher prices. Let’s say a truckload of parts is delivered to the widget factory. This load now costs more than the last due to fuel prices, so the next load of widgets leaving the factory will cost more, and that cost will be passed to the consumer.

On top of that, when the tea-head nut has to buy fuel to drive to the retailer to purchase the widget. who does he pass the tax increase on to? The end of the line is Joe six-pack, who gets it from both ends. I am along with many other tea-head nuts glad Gov. Henry McMaster has said he will veto any gas tax increase.