Running on fumes: Lack of will imperils fund that keeps Maine roads, bridges safe

In the near term, an increase in fuel taxes would likely be the simplest policy to implement. Raising the fuel tax would help spread the burden of paying for Maine roads among the state’s 1.3 million residents and 37 million annual visitors, wrote James Myall, a policy analyst for the left-leaning Maine Center for Economic Policy, in testimony on Collings’ bill. The Center estimates that Maine residents account for roughly 60 percent of the state’s gas tax revenue while visitors make up 23 percent. The trucking and shipping industry contributes the remaining 17 percent.

Click here to read the full story, first published September 2, 2021 in the Penobscot Bay Pilot.