Heading south of the border to gas up your car could soon be more expensive because of a proposed tax hike in Washington State.
A transportation revenue package was unveiled earlier this week that would see a 10-cent bump in the state’s gas tax.
The “Connecting Washington” plan is expected to raise $9.8-billion over the next 10 years, what democrats say is much-needed revenue to fund transportation initiatives, including improvements on the I-5 interstate which connects the state to British Columbia.
The plan would increase Washington State’s current gas tax of 37.5 cents per gallon by two cents annually over five years.
The democrat initiative was met by skepticism from Republican senator Ed Orcutt, who said consumers shouldn’t be punished at the gas pumps.
"We should make sure our tax dollars go further before we reach further into the taxpayers' pockets,” Orcutt said Wednesday.
It’s still a long process for the proposal to become reality.
Any new taxes in the state have to receive a two-thirds vote in both chambers of the Legislature or simple majorities in both houses --followed by a citizen vote.
With files from The Associated Press
