GOP state Rep. Mark Harmsworth gave KTTH’s Todd Herman an interesting update on what the Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT) has been up to to take more money from drivers. According to Harmsworth, WSDOT has completed studies looking into placing tolls on I-5 between Tacoma and Everett. And, currently, WSDOT is conducting studies looking at tolling on sections of I-90.
“The new connector that we just authorized this year will be tolled and they’re also going to ask for money to do the GPS studies,” Harmsworth said. “So they’re trying to put all the pieces together very slowly, but I think, ultimately, that’s where they’re going to go. And I agree with you, I don’t believe that’s the right way to pay for our roads.”
Why should the public be concerned with WSDOT’s studies? Well, to a certain degree, it reveals WSDOT is serious about implementing more tolls that will impact the pocketbooks of working families across the state—probably in hopes of pushing more drivers on to public transportation.
As for the GPS studies, they lend credibility to WSDOT’s considering another way to get money out of drivers via a road usage tax.
What!?!? More taxes… oh wait, “tolls”, they call them now. Tolls and fees. The English didn’t even have the gall to do this to us back in the day; that our own state government seeks to levy upon us a weight that the Founding Fathers could not bear will be foremost in my mind during all coming elections and public meetings.
Tolls, the most regressive and antiquated tax possible. Who votes for these idiots? Things we can learn from Europe; have you ever seen a carpool lane in Europe? The answer is no.
So, let me understand. We taxpayers fund the road, pay for the maintenance on the road an when we have the need to use OUR road we need to pay more? Am I the only one having a problem with this? This bunch of liberals need to go away, who agrees?
This is a conservative tax policy. Liberals favor a progressive tax over a regressive tax. This would be a regressive tax. http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/042415/what-are-differences-between-regressive-proportional-and-progressive-taxes.asp This may sound odd. How every to put is simply in a regressive tax system every one who uses the road pays $2 this means if you make 110k a year it’s a lower percentage of your income then if you made 24K a year. Now with states on the east coast that have an income tax. Every one pays between 2.5% to 3% of there income a year in tax. As well as a tax on property. Then there is no sales tax etc. Meaning that for every small purchase such as candy, food, clothing, etc you are not piecemealed out of your income. You know that you will pay 2.5% of your income to the state and that the guy that makes more or less then you will pay a certain amount as well. hope this helps.
It doesn’t help in the slightest. You clearly don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. There are only 5 states without a sales tax and only 2 east of the Mississippi River, Delaware and New Hampshire. Of the 43 states with an income tax, the rates range from 3% to 11%. Your 2.5 to 3% is an outright fantasy. Tolls on roads we already paid for and where only a tiny fraction (if any) goes back into road maintenance and construction are essentially a sin tax on transportation just because government can take it for other spending and that’s definitely a liberal tax policy.
Those that use the roads should be the ones to pay. What do Eastern Wash residents get from the current state gas taxes? Our county roads are better than the state funded roads.
There is no push back, this is agenda 21. push more people onto public transportation by making it too expensive to drive, its all part of the plan and its way out of hand. I think if everybody was wise to the end game we wouldn’t be this far already, and its only going to get much worse as according to the plan. They have a plan ,we dont.
by the way everybody, didnt you also know that asset forfeiture laws have resulted in law ENFORCEMENT illegally taking more property ILLEGALLY from citizens than all criminal acts by criminals COMBINED! Now lets make more laws to make it easier to take our money from the statistically proven biggest criminal and thief of them all, the government, or crooks disguised in uniform, or a wolves in sheep clothing whether willingly or by ignorance.
Just how does the state of Washington get these people who come up with so many ways to fleece the citizens who actually pay their wages? Doesn’t anyone WSDOT ever think about how to save money?
Our state has one of the highest gas tax of any state and why do we have such a need for more money in the way of tolling? The state collect more money now than it ever has which should be used expressly for highways! Most of the toll money from 405 goes out of state from what I understand for installation-monitoring & upkeep of the toll system and not upkeep on the roads. Can anyone tell me what happens to the money collected in fines. PLEASE can anyone figure out who these people are and how to get rid of the people at WADOT advocating all the tolling on the state highways. You know that 167 will be a toll road as soon as it gets refinished. It already has a HOV lane you need to pay to use but it soon be a toll road like 405.
Please visit http://stop405tolls.org and sign the petition!