Expect to See More Taxes in 2017, Starting at the Pump

If you fill upon January 1, expect to pay an additional 8 cents a gallon. That's right, the state that already has the highest gas tax in the nation is kicking things up to a mindboggling 58.3 cents a gallon. Add the federal tax of 18.4 cents a gallon and Pennsylvanians - already saddled with the highest gas tax in the country - will fork over 76.7 cents a gallon in gas taxes.

Then there's the 6 percent increase in tolls on the PA Turnpike (that 6 percent increase could be an annual event every year for the next 27 years!). And, just where is the increase going? To upgrade the quality of the Turnpike? A little, possibly, but mostly to divert Turnpike tolls to other state budget needs.

And just what is the presumed justification our spineless state legislators use for these increases? Moral impotence. Instead of requiring townships without police forces to pay for state police protection, all of us take it in the shorts so that those townships get "free" police protection. A lovely way to buy votes - target specific beneficiaries while spreading the pain across the masses.

And, the state of our roads and bridges? What a joke. I see next to no construction activity on Rt 22 and zero construction activity on the Northeast Extension. For most of last week, there was zero construction activity on the Fahy bridge which is now two months behind schedule. I guess week long holiday vacations for construction workers take precedence over bringing a job in on time. Maybe the Fahy contractor is in a contest to exceed the construction time for Rt 412. The way things are going, he might be successful.

Oh, and the South Side parking garage? You might want to check on how little progress has been made there.

PennDOT has the patent on simultaneously maximizing motorist inconvenience and maximizing the time period to complete a job. Municipal contractors just follow suit.

Cheers to a PA economy which will continue to falter.

Prepare For Higher Vehicle Registration Fees

Earlier this year, NorCo Council was poised to increase vehicle registration fees by $5 to help bridge repairs. Though Council President John Cusick called it a "user fee," it came under heavy criticism. In July, the measure failed by a 6-3 vote. An attempt to resurrect this increase in December was tabled without discussion.

Now comes word that we'll be paying more to drive anyway. According to The Patriot News, the state gas tax will soon be going up eight cents per gallon at the beginning of the year, and turnpike tolls will increase six percent. And if the Consumer Price Index goes up in February, so will vehicle registration and driver's license fees. Next year, the state will stop issuing vehicle registration stickers, which means police will have to buy license readers for which we, the public, will pay. Oh yeah, inspection stickers will go up $1.

This money is supposed to be used to fix the state's crumbling roads. But instead, Governor Wolf is diverting the money to fund state police coverage in communities too cheap to pay their own way. These include communities like Lower Macungie and Upper Mount Bethel, whose police coverage is being subsidized by the poor in Allentown and Easton.

Governor Wolf's office claims it has no clue on how to make up the shortfall.

The answer, obviously, is too assess any community that fails to provide for its own police coverage.