Thoughts on Proposed Sales Tax for Commuter Rail
They're discussing building a commuter rail line from downtown Milwaukee to the Illinois border, which I think is a brilliant idea. Build it.
Obviously, the financing of the project becomes an issue at some point. They're talking about a .05% sales tax that would bring in $8 million a year. I disagree with that tax, and propose something else that was discussed very lightly in the article, a gas tax.
See a gas tax makes sense like a waste tax makes sense to pay for pollution cleanup. A waste taxes those that create the waste, because they're costing the municipality money to clean it up. It drives the "wasters" to reduce their waste, thereby reducing their tax burden, while at the same time reducing the pollution a municipality must clean up. Brilliant, simple economics. It's what I call a "smart tax" something that directly generates a positive consequence for the community. Polluters would be able to manage their own taxes. They pollute less, they pay less. Municipality gets less money in the long run, but at the same time is less polluted.
The goal of the commuter rail line is to reduce congestion and encourage development. How do you accomplish that? Make it more expensive to drive, while providing an alternative. What's the alternative? The bus and rail system.
A gas tax for counties that have the rail service raises the money necessary to run the commuter rail line. Consumers don't like the tax? How do they avoid it? Ride the rail line to work. They don't pay the tax anymore, reducing the rail lines incoming funds, but at the same time reducing the amount of funds they need through having increased fare revenue from increased riders. It's another smart tax, unlike a sales tax, which would continually burden everyone despite behavioral reactions.
It really is that simple. The catch to making it work smoothly is to make sure the try is a viable alternative to driving your car to work.
Obviously, the financing of the project becomes an issue at some point. They're talking about a .05% sales tax that would bring in $8 million a year. I disagree with that tax, and propose something else that was discussed very lightly in the article, a gas tax.
See a gas tax makes sense like a waste tax makes sense to pay for pollution cleanup. A waste taxes those that create the waste, because they're costing the municipality money to clean it up. It drives the "wasters" to reduce their waste, thereby reducing their tax burden, while at the same time reducing the pollution a municipality must clean up. Brilliant, simple economics. It's what I call a "smart tax" something that directly generates a positive consequence for the community. Polluters would be able to manage their own taxes. They pollute less, they pay less. Municipality gets less money in the long run, but at the same time is less polluted.
The goal of the commuter rail line is to reduce congestion and encourage development. How do you accomplish that? Make it more expensive to drive, while providing an alternative. What's the alternative? The bus and rail system.
A gas tax for counties that have the rail service raises the money necessary to run the commuter rail line. Consumers don't like the tax? How do they avoid it? Ride the rail line to work. They don't pay the tax anymore, reducing the rail lines incoming funds, but at the same time reducing the amount of funds they need through having increased fare revenue from increased riders. It's another smart tax, unlike a sales tax, which would continually burden everyone despite behavioral reactions.
It really is that simple. The catch to making it work smoothly is to make sure the try is a viable alternative to driving your car to work.
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