Governor Otter established a Task Force on Modernizing Transportation Funding in Idaho. The Task Force first met in August 2009 and was charged with considering both traditional and nontraditional sources of revenue for maintenance and preservation of highways and bridges including, but not limited to, the rates, methods and manner of calculating any and all taxes, fees, and registrations relating to fuels, motor vehicles, and motor carriers. Additionally, the Task Force was asked to consider whether all users are paying their reasonably equitable proportion of highway and road costs. A Final Resolution including six specific recommendations was provided by Task Force to Governor Otter on December 1, 2010.
The Texas Department of Transportation published a Vehicle Mileage Fee Primer in December 2009. The primer provides an overview of vehicle mileage fees and is structured to highlight: frequently asked questions about vehicle mileage fees; long-term concerns with the current fuel tax system; the arguments for vehicle mileage fees; experiences with mileage fees and other road pricing strategies in the U.S. and abroad; assessing, collecting, and enforcing vehicle mileage fees; the public policy questions; and the challenges to implementation, namely the public acceptance barriers.
The Washington State Transportation Center (TRAC) developed this 2009 report to improve understanding of how tolling may affect low-income populations in the Puget Sound region. The report accomplishes the following four objectives: reviews existing research on the impacts of tolling on low-income households in the United States; assesses the usefulness of currently available Washington and Puget Sound data for estimating the impacts of tolling on low-impact populations; develops a preliminary estimate of the impacts of tolling on low-income populations living in the Puget Sound region and suggests data collection and methodological strategies for future research that would yield better estimates of the impacts of tolling on low-income populations in the Puget Sound region and other parts of Washington state.
This May 2006 report produced for the National Conference of State Legislatures provides detailed information about transportation funding options for state legislatures. The case for transportation funding is made based on travel trends, population growth, congestion, new transportation challenges and growing transportation funding needs. What states buy with funding for highways and public transportation, and the sources and distribution of federal, state, and local transportation funding sources are explained. A comparative analysis of economic benefits of transportation investments and revenue sources is provided as well as a case study on the Chicago Skyway deal.
The National Highway Cooperative Research Program published its Report 377, Alternatives to Motor Fuel Taxes for Financing Surface Transportation Improvements, in 1995. This research project focused on updating the work of NCHRP Report 377 to better evaluate the potential for alternatives to motor fuel taxes. The project maintained a primary focus on passenger vehicles and on the issues that must be addressed in designing an alternative. The project consisted of a literature review, an analysis of the economic issues related to fuel tax alternatives, and an analysis of the technological issues related to fuel tax alternatives. Several conclusions and recommendations for further research are offered. In addition, the report outlines several issues that policy makers will have to address as they explore alternatives to dependency on fuel tax revenue.
