Bill filed to allow gas tax to drop while preserving road fund dollars

Kentucky House Republican Caucus

Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2015 — House Republican Floor Leader Jeff Hoover, R-Jamestown, filed a bill Tuesday for the 2015 Regular Session that would fully protect the dollars set aside for counties and cities in Kentucky’s Road Fund.

“The ability of our state, county and local governments to maintain highways and bridges is already under some strain, and given the snow, ice, and sub-zero temperatures the available dollars in our Road Fund will be stretched even further,” said Leader Hoover. “We cannot sit idly by in the House during this session without offering some type of solution. I know this situation is important, and this bill will get the conversation going during the days we have left to address our road fund situation.”

Hoover’s bill would allow Kentucky’s gas tax to drop, saving all Kentucky families hundreds of dollars, while also ensuring full funding for city and county governments road funds. The bill freezes Kentucky’s gas tax at a level so that budgets for local governments remain stable, allowing cities and counties to maintain the safety of their local roads and bridges. Hoover’s proposal does not keep the state portion of Kentucky’s gas tax from declining, keeping extra dollars in consumers’ pockets.

“If we fail to take action during the remaining two plus weeks of this session, we know that our roads and bridges across Kentucky will continue to fall into disrepair,” he said. “I urge all sides to come together and pass legislation, whether it is my bill or legislation proposed in the Senate, so our state, county and city governments won’t lose funding due to the fluctuation in our gas tax.”

House Bill 513 was filed Tuesday in the House, which was the last day for new bills to be filed for consideration in this session.

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