Transportation funding comments – Part 2

Anthony Miller, a sales consultant and executive coach, is President of Stepping Stone Solutions. He worked as an outside sales representative for a local petroleum distributor, specializing in the sale of bulk fuel and lubricants. He went on to be the General Manager for an out-of-state petroleum distributor responsible for more than $40m in annual sales, before returning to Oregon to start his own business. And he’s a fellow member of Blue Ox Toastmasters.

I have some thoughts that I would like to share regarding the road improvements suggested by Sam Adams. I have two concerns: 1) the amount of money being requested and 2) I feel that any tax in the form of a fuel tax is inappropriate considering the current state of fuel pricing.

Foremost, I would like to see the list of priorities for the $263 million Mr. Adams is saying the city needs for road improvements. Mr. Adams points out that 127 miles of major Portland roads are unpaved. Many people can avoid those roads, or can live with them as they are. And if a traffic signal in “poor condition” is working, I would prefer to spend money on a bridge in poor condition. Ultimately my concern is handing over $263 million because a side street is unpaved and a stoplight is rusting a little bit. Being able to see a prioritized list along with a definition for “poor condition” for the bridges, stop signs and arterial roads would be a must before I could support any tax for this purpose.

My second concern is the form of tax being proposed. While I am all for sin taxes as a form of taxation, this is not the time to levy a 12-cent fuel tax on the city. As the former general manager of a $40 million dollar petroleum distribution company, I am acutely aware of the hardship that rising fuel costs place on businesses and the consumer.

One thing that’s unclear to me is if this tax would apply to diesel fuel. In all fairness it should, because the purpose of a sin tax is that those who use the product pay for the damage that product causes — and large diesel vehicles certainly put more wear and tear on the roads than passenger cars. However, a diesel tax is extremely damaging to business and the local economy. The impact is wide; contractors have to increase building costs, grocers have to pass on increased costs to consumers, schools have to find room in the budget for the increased costs, and on and on and on.

This doesn’t even address the everyday commuter. In a two car household where both cars needing 40 gallons a month in fuel, this is a cost increase of $10 a month, in addition to the steadily climbing price of fuel. With an average cost in Oregon of $3.13, the same household is already paying $250 a month for fuel! To put another $10 a month on top of that is a difficult bill to swallow.

Mr. Adams spent $40,000 to survey voters to see what they would be willing to pay. I would have charged a much smaller fee to the city and told Mr. Adams that he should start lower than the fees proposed (and failed) by Charlie Hales in 2001. I also would have told him a gas tax would be overburdening the citizens and that more clarification on his priorities is needed.