Nov. 19 – Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee last week said he would propose a diesel tax increase to repair roads instead of supporting toll booths on Arkansas interstate highways, reports the Associated Press.

Lane Kidd, president of the Arkansas Motor Carriers Assn., is critical of the 3-cent-per-gallon diesel tax increase that is part of a $2.3 billion road program proposed by the governor’s Citizens Council on Highways and Transportation. Huckabee, who appointed the council to come up with ways to finance highway construction, said he’d follow its recommendations.
“The commission continues to want to improve the state’s highways on the backs of the trucking industry,” Kidd told the AP.
Huckabee and the trucking industry agree when it comes to rejecting the idea of toll booths on the interstates. The governor joined a national coalition of truckers and others last week in a drive to block efforts. Citizens for Safe and Efficient Highways announced it would make Arkansas “ground zero” in their campaign. The state highway commission has voted to apply for a toll permit, allowed for up to three states under the highway spending bill passed last summer.