Gasoline Tax

Massachusetts could be the next state of a very small club in using a vehicle miles traveled tax as part of an effort to find alternatives to funding highway projects.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer’s bid to raise federal fuel taxes to pay for more investment in roads and bridges drew strong support from a wide range of interests, including American Trucking Associations.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., will introduce bills to raise federal fuel taxes, index them to inflation and test a vehicle-mile tax. The proposals, which Blumenauer is scheduled to discuss on Capitol Hill Wednesday, come as Congress begins to consider ways to revive funding for U.S. roads and bridges.

Washington could be headed in the direction of having the second highest state diesel and gasoline taxes in the nation. Legislation has been introduced in the state senate to boosting the current 37.5 cents per gallon levy by 11.5 cents, totaling 49 cents per gallon.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell signed legislation Monday raising billions of dollars for transportation that includes new taxes on fuel. They may go even higher depending on what happens to legislation on Capitol Hill.

Lawmakers in Vermont have given final approval to legislation increasing the state diesel and gasoline taxes, although it's less than originally proposed.

More than two months after Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder called for increasing revenue for road and bridge projects, state lawmakers are considering a plan that would end some taxes on fuel and bring in new ones.

As lawmakers in Vermont look to raise money for road and other transportation projects, trucking could get dragged into the mix with talk of a possible diesel tax hike. One proposal in the state legislature calls for increasing the diesel tax by 2 cents per gallon this year followed by a 2-cent hike in 2014.