Initiative to repeal Calif. gas tax qualifies for Nov. ballot
By Melody Gutierrez, San Francisco Chronicle
California voters will decide whether to repeal newly enacted gas taxes and vehicle registration fees that fund road repairs under a ballot initiative that will appear on the November ballot.
Proponents of the repeal turned in more than the 585,407 valid signatures needed to qualify for the November ballot. The measure would remove the transportation taxes and fees approved by the Legislature last year under SB1, which is expected to raise $5 billion a year to pay for the state’s roads and bridges.
The ballot measure would remove the 12 cent per gallon increase in the state’s gas excise tax and the added 20 cent per gallon increase in the excise tax on diesel fuel, which is used by the commercial trucking industry. Vehicle registration fee increases that began in January would also be repealed. Those fees raised registration costs by $25 to $175 depending on the value of the vehicle.
