[Oeva-list] Update on HB2328

[Lawrence Winiarski]

--- On Wed, 5/4/11, cje at hevanet.com <cje at hevanet.com> wrote:

As far as the "cutting benefits" etc stuff goes, it doesn't work like 
that. They're already taking furlough days and benefit cuts. Dark 
mutterings about "taxing the little guy so they don't have to suffer too"  
and hating on the gummint slug DOT guys don't really further any 
constructive ends. The problem here is the legislators, not the guys with 
the shovels.



I refer you to the abstract of the talk by Gail Achterman, Chair, Oregon Transportation Commission .
It has the following paragraph.
 But the transportation revenue model is broken. Revenues flowing into the federal Highway Trust Fund have fallen significantly due to higher gas prices, recession pressures and the shift to alternative fuels. Meanwhile, state fuel tax revenue can only be used for highway transportation projects.
First, I highly doubt the shift to alternative fuels affects them in any measureableway.
So it sounds pretty obvious that they are  claiming the system is "broken" becausethe recession is taking a hit on them too.   
This hardly sounds "broken" to me.    It actually sounds a desireable feedback.i.e. people are poorer, less people are driving, so less money is coming back into the roads.   If everyone elses wages are falling, is it broken to suggest that government's wages should fall also?
Do you think she would be claiming the system is "broken" if it was the other way around?   i.e.  " Well more people are driving because of the economic boom, and lower gas prices and we are getting a ton more money, so the system must be broken...."
Personally I think her abstract shows pretty clearly exactly what I alluded to.  "They don't expect their fortunes to rise and fall with the general public.   Theyonly expect them to rise".    So I think it is actually "Tax the little guy more"because the system is "broken".   They just don't say it in those words.
More something like.....
Because the transportation revenue system is universally regarded to be unsustainable, we most seek more ways to look at smaller revenue sources which have not been fully exploited in order to fully fund ourobligations


I'm just not falling for that hot air.....
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