GM president wants $1.00 hike in fed. gas tax

Yep, they're MUCH higher there (www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/gas1.xls).

But, there's also a distinct lack of people driving around monstrosity class battery rams of death (aka full-sized SUVs like the Tahoe, Suburban, Expedition, Navigator, Escalade and their ilk). I noticed virtually none on my trip there last December that stopped in 7 European countries. Compare that numbers I see here and the insane % I saw when I lived in south San Jose, CA.

 

Depends on how they implement it. For example:
- they can pro-rate it, 9c over next 10 years
- they can choose to tax gasoline only (fleets mostly run on diesel) the way EU country do.

Theoretically this would help with national debt and trade deficit as well.

Will it happen? with 286 house republicans signing pledge not to rise taxes?

The only way it can happen if they end up subsidies and tax breaks to oil companies.

 

as the article said

Its really a mistake to think that it would wreck our economy. We are in a severe deficit. Some taxes need to be raised, and these are taxes that would offset the subsidies. Hey lets kill the subsidies and add gas taxes. That might actually get us to use less gas and reduce the trade deficit. If you are worried about poor people you can increase the standard deduction to take care of the extra revenue, but remember we need to cut spending and remove some of our deficit. This is definitely a better way to do this and reduce co2 than that subsidy laden cap and tax bill that failed.

The subsidies for oil and ethanol could end today, but the tax should be phased in to all people time to replace there gas guzzling cars and trucks with more efficient vehicles. This might actually get rid of the need for the government to mandate higher cafe standards if buyers are asking for the efficient cars. We need to at least get to the new cafe standards first.

 

The GM CEO should focus on making products people want to buy so his company can be profitable and not require bailouts from taxpayers.

 

Republicans would be on board if half of the dollar hike went to the ceo's of the oil companies. Thats the only way they would do anything.

 

shocking really. posturing because he knows it won't happen or heartfelt?

 

I don't have time to read all the comments there, but some of them are pretty amusing like:

I guess he just wants guzzlers or something.

Gee, maybe he shouldn't have bought a 15 mpg vehicle in the first place. Who says he has to spend $30K on a new vehicle? He has an old car as it is.

 

How much beer did this dude drink before coming up with the $1 gas tax? A $1 gas tax would not fly in America, and if it somehow did pass into law, it would only hurt those with little wealth to begin with. Which is most of America!

 

I'm confused. Does GM seriously think that they would be the ones to benefit from an increased consciousness about energy usage? That they have the most fuel efficient cars? Or are they just hoping that by saying this they are creating that impression in people's minds?

 

I am all for a national energy policy that would push people in to more fuel efficient cars and to research alternate fuels, and wean us off our addiction to imported oil. A $1 gas tax is not the way to do it to me.

I have 4 kids that are all newly married and trying to start families. Do any of you remember when you were first starting out and were struggling to make ends meet each month? The high gas prices will really hurt them.

My kids do not have big honking SUV's but have Toyota Sienna minivans to carry children and Ford Explorer 6-cylinders. Not great on mileage but very functional for their needs right now. At this point in their life buying a new $20-30k, fuel efficient vehicle is just not in their budgets. Maybe in a few more years once they begin to get ahead.

Two of my kids are unemployed, working part time jobs and going back to school. They surely cannot afford a $1 gas tax hike.

The majority of us on PC are fortunate enough that a $1 gas tax would not affect our budgets, but we are the minority not the majority.

 

I agree that something should be done to encourage alternative fuel vehicles. The hybrids and plugin hybrids are a great bridge to get there. I think we have to remember we have spent decades learning the mentality that bigger is better. Faster is better. And for the most part, many people don't really need the excursion, suburban, etc. Its their perceived need that ends up closing the deal.

I am new to the hybrid arena myself, but have always preferred smaller, more economical vehicles. I would think a tax increase over time and with a reallocaion of resources would do us well. Oh and btw...I am a republican!

SPH-D700 ?

 

I think we need to increase the fedral gas tax at least 1$. It does not need to be spent on our wars or more bombs, planes, we already have increased that spending thousands of times in the last 12 years. But to build new roads, fix the 1,000 of bridges that are failing. To build more public tranportation ect ect.

People say the the young and poor can't afford it. most of the time thats not true. I don't feel bad for someone that wants to drive a suv that gets 12mpg. Nobody needs it. It's like saying poor bob and jill they just bought their first house thats 3,000 square feet and they can't afford to heat it. People need to think about things.

 

The car companies continously game the cafe standards. Now that standards are raised there are fines if they don't sell efficient cars, so for a company like gm or ford or toyota it is better if we raise gas taxes than to raise cafe standards again. For years the unions and auto pacs have fought both cafe laws and gas taxes, the writing is on the wall now though. The auto companies are better off with weaker cafe standards and higher gas taxes. If gm doesn't sell enough cruzes then they will have a big bill every time they sell an escalade or a silverado.

 

It won't hurt him with 20 million bonus that we the tax payer gave them.
They don't care about the working man only how much more they can make. Maybe if they would build a fuel efficient car might be a better approach.

 

Shoot...thats just in Chicago alone!

 

They finally figured out how to sell Volts after all

 

They DID try that back in the 1990's but when forced to keep building it ... they crushed 'em.

 

What if the tax was rebated on a per capita basis to everyone?

 

Excellent question. Revenue neutral.

When I hear people say that $1 on gas would "ruin the economy" I have to wonder how we survived gas going from $2 to $3. Then $3 to $4. And a couple of years ago $4 to $5.

So we can charge a tax and keep that money here - or we can keep sending most of it out of our economy. We NEED a floor cost on gasoline. Nobody will invest in alternatives if they can't count on a floor cost of traditional energy. If you think the economy is screwed if we tax ourselves for using things that are killing us... just keep watching what happens when we send all that money OUT of our economy to keep the SUVs rolling.