SC Gas Tax Could Go Up to Maintain Roads

South Carolina's cigarette tax just went up July 1 for the first time in more than 30 years. Could the state gas tax be next?

The state gas tax is 16 cents a gallon, which is lowest in the Southeast and fourth-lowest in the nation.

"Everybody pretty much is familiar with how many increases we've had in the postal rate in the past several years," Limehouse says. "Well picture that against the DOT's funding of no increases since 1987. If we'd had an inflationary factor, and I'm not advocating this much increase, gas tax would've gone up by 50 cents a gallon just on the inflation."

That means the gas tax hasn't been able to keep up with the rising cost of the materials needed to repair roads and bridges.

"Our roads are kind of at a tipping point. If we don't do something now, we're going to go down fast," Limehouse says.

He expects the state Taxation Realignment Commission, which is studying the state's entire tax structure and looking for ways to make it work better and be fairer, to recommend this fall a state gas tax increase of 10 cents a gallon, phased in over three years.

"We've got to do something to build in some inflation so that we can maintain the transportation that we have. It's critical to tourism and it's critical to attracting jobs and industry," Limehouse says.

But getting a higher gas tax through the legislature will be difficult. Republicans control the House and Senate and many of them have signed pledges against any kind of tax increase.

As Xavier Starkes of Columbia filled up his gas tank Thursday, he said, "With the economy being as tight as it is, it's tough on everybody to have another increase in a tax. But if it's for the good of our community and the state, I think we all have some responsibility to help with those repairs. So if it's phased in over 3 years, 10 cents, probably not that bad. I would not have a problem with that."

Other options to a higher gas tax include: adding the sales tax to gasoline, which is now exempt; creating a new tax based on how many miles you drive; raising or eliminating the current $300 sales tax cap on cars and trucks, using the money for roads; or toll roads.

Columbia driver Elizabeth Bolton says, "I just came from Massachusetts, Boston and they had toll roads up there, which is kind of a pain, so I'd kind of hate to see that. So probably taxes would be a little bit better than a toll road, from my perspective."

Limehouse says he thinks most drivers would feel the same, especially since improving road maintenance would improve safety and avoid some car repairs caused by potholes and other problems. He says the SCDOT has received 101 claims from a substandard surface in Charleston that caused pieces of road to fly up and hit windshields and chip paint. He says the claims are averaging about $2,000 each.