Now is the time to raise gas taxes

Oil is at $62 per barrel, and gas is below $3 per gallon. If we are serious about breaking the national addiction to imported fossil fuels, then we need to keep the consumers’ cost of oil above $100 per barrel, so that efficiency solutions and renewable energy developments can become established in the marketplace. We should offset this tax on productivity with increased personal income tax deductions, reduced corporate tax rates, and possibly annual stimulus payments.

Americans consumes about 360 million gallons of gas each day. Raising the federal gas tax 12 cents immediately and 3 cents each quarter for the next 8 years (for a total of $1.08 by 2016) would keep the price of gas above $3/gallon, give time for consumers and business to adjust to higher gasoline prices, and would raise $15.8 billion per year now and $142 billion per year in 4 years (assuming consumption remains flat).

We could dedicate a portion of this revenue to increasing the federal highway infrastructure fund and return the rest to taxpayers via either a permanent increase of standard deductions by $3000 per person and $1500 per child, and a reduction in business taxes.

We should tax that which is not sustainable (burning fossil fuels) and remove taxes on that which is sustainable (income, children, and employment).