Poll: Voters Remain Opposed To Raising State Gas Taxes

Among the three states, Utah respondents were the least averse to gas tax increases; New Jerseyans the most.

While only 34-35 percent of respondents supported increasing the gas tax to fund transportation, "a majority of Utahns support an income tax increase that would go to public schools," writes Lisa Riley Roche of KSL.com

Utah State University political science professor Damon Cann [PDF], who drafted questions and analyzed the poll results, said it's not surprising voters would back a tax increase for schools over one for roads.

"If my kids are well-educated and my roads are a little bumpy, I’m totally OK with that," Cann said. "People are weighing these tradeoffs."

Of course, accessing good schools requires safe roads and reliable public transit where available.

No doubt legislators considering a 10-cent increase in the gas tax this year were aware of the poll findings.

In the Peachtree State, "60 percent say they do not support increasing the gas tax to fund maintenance of existing roads and bridges," reports Sandra Parrish of WSB Radio. "It showed 23 percent would support." A transportation sales tax fared better:

When asked if they would support a one cent statewide sales tax to raise the money, only 32 percent said they would while 52 percent said they would oppose it.

For those who would like to see the gas tax increase offset by an income tax decrease—an approach supported by conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer (though on the federal, not the state level)—the results were better: 35 percent said they would support while 31 percent would oppose it.

Interestingly, an increased gas tax fared the worst in one of the least gas-taxed states. "The Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll of 803 New Jersey adult residents found that 68 percent oppose raising the tax on gasoline to fund transportation projects, while just 28 percent are in favor," writes Matt Friedman of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. The opposition dropped from 72 percent in March, when gas prices were a dollar higher.

“New Jersey residents see the need for road repairs, but they want policymakers to find the revenue somewhere else, rather than their overtaxed wallets,” said Krista Jenkins, professor of political science and director of PublicMind.

Only two percent of respondents opposed hiking the gas tax because they were content with road conditions. The main reasons for opposing the increase were:

• An increase because they feel that taxes in general are too high (44 percent).
• They doubt the money would actually go to transportation projects (31 percent). 
• They can’t afford an increase (20 percent).

We noted here that a 25-cent gas tax has been proposed to bale out the state transportation trust fund.

According to the American Petroleum Institute [PDF], New Jersey's 14.5-cent gas tax is the second lowest in the United States, after Alaska. The national average is 27.66 cents per gallon, just above Georgia's 26.53-cents. Utah's gas tax is 24.5 cents.