Team Whit and Welch Urge Bristol Motorists to Sign Statewide Petition to Fight July 1st Gas Tax Hike

Sen. Jason Welch collecting signatures at the Citgo Mini Mart on Rte. 6 in Bristol, the petition is aimed at fighting a gas tax hike scheduled for July 1.

Rep. Whit Betts holding an Axe the Gas Tax sign along Rte. 6 in Bristol, the petition is aimed at fighting a gas tax hike scheduled for July 1.

Hartford, CT –Senator Jason Welch (R-Bristol) and Representative Whit Betts (R-Bristol) along with Republican legislators from across the state gathered signatures for a petition to fight increases in the state gas tax and diesel fuel tax scheduled for July 1st. Motorists can sign an online petition by visiting www.AxeTheGasTaxCT.com.

“What was overwhelmingly clear is that people are mad,” said Rep. Betts. “They are fed up and frustrated with having to see their tax dollars being used to cover overspending by a bloated state government.”

“These tax hikes are killing our economy and hurting Connecticut families and businesses. We can fight this tax hike and send a message to the administration that enough is enough. Shared sacrifice should not have to come at the expense of families who already pay a hefty price to live in Connecticut,” said Sen. Welch.

The gas tax in Connecticut is already about 22 cents higher than in neighboring states like Massachusetts and the July 1st gas tax hike would raise prices at the pump another 4 cents per gallon.

The tax set to increase (called the petroleum gross receipts tax) is a hidden state tax on gasoline that motorists pay above and beyond the state (25¢) and federal (18.4¢) excise taxes. This tax is a percentage of the wholesale price of gasoline and is scheduled to increase from 7% to 8.1% on July 1st (a 16% increase). According to the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association (CEMA), the average wholesale price of gasoline in Connecticut is currently $2.82/gallon and Connecticut state taxes on a gallon of gasoline total 45 cents.

At the same time, Connecticut’s Diesel Fuel Tax, which is based on the petroleum gross receipts tax rate, is scheduled to increase by 3.5 cents per gallon, which will increase trucking and transportation costs, causing a ripple effect that will increase consumer costs on everything from groceries and clothing, to construction, as well as other goods and services.

“In particular, they are very upset to learn that the money from this gas tax increase will be going to the General Fund that includes paying for the highly unpopular ‘magic’ Busway, instead of repairing our structurally deficient roads and bridges. They are very supportive of our efforts to get the gas tax increase repealed,” added Rep. Betts.

Legislative Republicans offered plans this legislative session in committee and in both the State Senate and State House of Representatives to eliminate the tax hike and they proposed several options to replace the lost revenue. None of which were accepted by the majority party.

The Bristol petition drive took place at the Citgo Mini Mart on Rte. 6. During the course of two hours the lawmakers collected nearly 100 signatures from motorists. As of Tuesday, more than 12,000 people statewide had signed the online petition. The next step is to present the petition to the Governor in the hopes public pressure will enable him to call lawmakers back to Hartford for a special vote to repeal the tax hike.