A 10-cent per gallon increase in the gas tax is set to take effect on Sunday after it passed in both chambers of the Iowa Legislature and was signed by Governor Terry Branstad this week.
State Senator Amy Sinclair and Representatives Greg Heartsill and Guy Vander Linden voted against the legislation. Vander Linden says he opposed the bill because it was the easiest option available and says the additional revenue won’t reach the places that need the most assistance.
“I’m not convinced that the increased revenue will go to the places it’s needed,” Vander Linden says. “The Governor, in his signing statement, referred to the widening of Highway 20 in northern Iowa. That is hardly a farm to market road, which is supposedly where the revenue is needed.”
Senator Ken Rozenboom voted in favor of the increase, which passed both chambers with bipartisan support. A person who drives 15,000 miles a year in a vehicle that gets 25 miles per gallon would pay an additional $60 annually, or an average of $5 a month. The new taxes and fees are expected to generate $200 million annually for road improvements.