JAN. 9, 2015 — With the General Assembly set to reconvene Tuesday, expect issues like ethics reform, education funding, domestic violence and the local government fund to be important pieces of the agenda. But they will all take a backseat to repairing the state’s massive roads system.
According to the federal government, South Carolina needs more than $42 billion to repair and maintain the 40,000-plus miles of state roads, highways and bridges.
Over the last two sessions, however, the legislature has only set aside $50 million to help secure loans to update the state’s beleaguered roads system, a seeming drop in the bucket. Going through the state infrastructure bank enabled legislators to get loans for $500 million, or close to 2 percent of the amount needed, from that amount.
The overriding problem, beyond the decades of neglect to the nation’s fourth-largest state roadways system, is how to pay for the improvements and projects.
Every year, state budget writers in the House and Senate cut and pinch to provide funding for all of state government. It was especially difficult during the Great Recession when coffers where light and only “core” functions of state government were anywhere close to fully-funded.
The state Department of Transportation has stated to get South Carolina the roads system it deserves, it will take an additional $1.5 billion a year for three decades.
Option: Raising the user fee on gas
Many in state government have identified that the only place left to raise that kind of money is in raising the state gasoline tax, because the General Fund budget was “tapped.”
But there are two problems with raising the gas tax, one of the lowest in the nation. One, the lesser of the two problems, is that it’s not a tax, but a 16.75-cent per gallon charge that would be unchanged by price fluctuations at the pump.
So technically it’s really a levied “user fee.” But that’s just semantics because the real problem is political. As badly as South Carolina needs better roads, there appear to be few politicians willing to commit the “political suicide” of championing a tax increase.
State Sen. John Scott (D-Columbia) said it will take a bipartisan effort and that he stands ready to join with Republicans who control the House and the Senate — as well as the governor — to solve the problem. Gov. Nikki Haley has pledged to veto any gas tax increases.
But there seem to be as many plans to solve the issue as there are legislators, and that could dilute what political will there is to move forward.
“There are 500 suggestions, solutions and possibilities,” said Senate Minority Leader Nikki Setzler (D-West Columbia).
House Speaker Jay Lucas (R-Hartsville) said this week he hoped an ad hoc committee would deliver a completed bill for consideration next week. But Lucas doesn’t like the idea of raising the gas tax.
“I think any movement to deal with roads in this state will have to find funding in other ways to raise revenue besides raising the gas tax, although that issue will be part of the conversation” said Lucas.
Lucas favored further utilizing the sales tax on cars, capped at $300 per vehicle, to fund roads. Two years ago, Setzler pushed through a law that dedicated 40 percent of that sales tax amount for roads, resulting in the aforementioned $50 million.
No silver bullet
But even with that additional car tax funding, which could push a little over $110 million more into the infrastructure bank annually and result in $1.1 billion in loans, that still leaves roads improvements hundreds of millions of dollars short every year.
“There is no silver bullet, one-shot-and-you’re-done solution,” Lucas said, adding that it was important that the state was having the conversation and more solutions could come to the fore.
State Rep. Gary Simrill (R-Rock Hill) turned heads with a pre-filed bill that would turnover half the state’s road system to counties, give counties the ability to increase its own gas tax, and then introduce a statewide penny sales tax referendum for roads on the next ballot.
Several members of both chambers said they were uncomfortable with those measures, as it would be seen as the state abdicating its responsibilities and be a further burden on local governments.
State Sen. Brad Hutto, an Orangeburg Democrat, kicked the same hornet’s nest with his call to put a toll on Interstate 95, as he has for the past few years.
Setzler said “it was too early to tell” and that he would have to talk one-on-one next week with other members and legislators to accurately gauge what will happen on roads funding this session.
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