LANSING, MI (AP)-- Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is backing away from his call to raise an extra $1.2 billion for road and bridge maintenance.
The Republican governor suggests that a permanent transportation funding solution he proposed earlier may be out of reach in the Legislature. But he told The Associated Press in a phone interview from China Wednesday night EDT that pieces of the package are salvageable.
Snyder still suggests replacing Michigan's cents-per-gallon gasoline tax with a percentage levy at the wholesale level. He says the plan instead could be revenue neutral but at least help tax revenues keep pace with purchasing power.
Road funding is at its lowest level in 30 years when adjusted for inflation. People are driving less and with more fuel-efficient cars while the 19-cents-per-gallon gasoline tax stays flat.
