Gov. Asa Hutchinson proposed levying a new wholesale sales tax on gas and diesel fuel, permanently extending the state's half-percent sales tax for highways, and dedicating casino tax revenue and other state funds to eventually raise $300 million a year for the state Department of Transportation.
Counties and cities also would receive about $114 million a year for their roads under this long-term highway funding plan.
The new wholesale sales tax on motor fuels would increase the tax on gas by 3 cents per gallon and on diesel by 6 cents per gallon. The new tax would be indexed, meaning it would grow by no more than 0.10 of a cent a year. The tax would require a simple majority vote for approval in the 100-member House and 35-member Senate, Hutchinson said.
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