Conservative Coalition Against Gas Tax Hike

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February 12, 2018

Dear Representative:
On behalf of our organizations and the millions of Americans we represent across all 50 states, we write to express our opposition to raising the federal gas tax. Federal policy should concentrate first on the many impediments to a more efficient, effective, and user-accountable transportation network.

Raising the gas tax is a bad idea. It will make the burden of government on families and businesses heavier. A higher gas tax means higher prices not just on gas, but on goods and services throughout the economy. These costs would inevitably be passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices, resulting in a regressive tax hike on those who can least afford it.

We applaud the landmark tax reform bill recently approved by Congress and signed into law by President Trump. Millions of families and small businesses will benefit from these pro-growth tax cuts after years of slow economic growth and stagnant wages. Undermining the impact of this long overdue and badly needed tax relief by raising the federal gas tax would be counterproductive and misguided – hitting less affluent Americans and those living on fixed incomes the hardest.

Rather than seeking to increase prices at the pump in the form of a tax hike, lawmakers should first reform the way existing transportation dollars are spent.

Too often, highway funds are diverted to non-highway projects, a problem that worsens with each passing year. This non-highway spending shortchanges motorists, and undermines the user-pays principle.

In addition, labor mandates and byzantine planning and analysis requirements can needlessly delay the completion of transportation projects and contribute to increased costs. Modernizing these burdensome planning requirements and sweeping away cost-boosting labor restrictions would stretch existing dollars further.

Before asking Americans to pay more for a tank of gas, Congress should pursue common-sense reforms that properly prioritize federal transportation infrastructure needs, reduce costly and time-consuming bureaucratic hurdles, and ensure that tax dollars are spent on roads and bridges, not frittered away on unrelated pet projects, red tape and paperwork.

Sincerely,
Brent Wm. Gardner
Chief Government Affairs Officer
Americans for Prosperity

Michael A. Needham
CEO
Heritage Action for America

Grover Norquist
President
Americans for Tax Reform

David McIntosh
President
Club for Growth

Nathan Nascimento
Executive Vice President
Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce

Mark Scribner
Senior Fellow
Competitive Enterprise Institute

Jason Pye
Vice President of Legislative Affairs
FreedomWorks

Tom Schatz
President
Citizens Against Government Waste

Pete Sepp
President
National Taxpayers Union

Phil Kerpen
President
American Commitment

Mario H. Lopez
President
Hispanic Leadership Fund

Daniel Garza
President
The Libre Initiative

Carrie L. Lukas
President
Independent Women’s Forum

Heather R. Higgins
President and CEO
Independent Women’s Voice

Harry C. Alford
President and CEO
National Black Chamber of Commerce

Jeffrey Mazella
President
Center for Individual Freedom
Donald Bryson
President
Civitas Action

David Barnes
Policy Director
Generation Opportunity

Norm Singleton
President
Campaign for Liberty

Judson Phillips
Founder
Tea Party Nation

Seton Motley
President
Less Government

Kim Crockett, Esq.
Vice President, Senior Fellow and General Counsel
Center of the American Experiment

Tom Brinkman, Jr.
Chairman
Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST)

Matthew Kandrach
President
Consumer Action for a Strong Economy (CASE)

Katie McAulliffe
Executive Director
Digital Liberty

Brett Healy
President
John K. MacIver Institute

Sean Noble
President
American Encore

Annette Meeks
CEO
Freedom Foundation of Minnesota

Andrew F. Quinlan
President
Center for Freedom and Prosperity