Ohio House approves bill to hike gas tax by about 10 cents

COLUMBUS — The Ohio House approved a transportation budget bill Thursday to hike the state's gas and diesel taxes to help maintain roads and bridges.The House passed the bill 71-27 on Thursday, with state Rep. Steve Arndt, R-Port Clinton, voting in favor. It now heads to the Ohio Senate.The bill would increase the gas tax by 10.7 cents per gallon over two years and the diesel tax by 20 cents per gallon over three years. Both increases would start Oct. 1.Arndt said an increase in the gas tax is necessary and said stalling for time by borrowing money won't work anymore. "For the past 14 years, the motor fuel tax has stagnated, while the costs of materials for our roads and bridges has risen an average of 3.5 percent for roads and 5.2 percent for bridges, with inflation," Arndt said in a news release explaining his vote."Previous administrations have addressed this issue primarily by borrowing against future motor fuel tax revenues to pay for maintenance and construction. But we have reached a point where the state has maxed out that option and an increase in the gas tax had to be considered in order to keep our roads maintained," he said.Arndt noted the House trimmed the governor's proposal. State Rep. Dick Stein, R-Norwalk, also voted for the bill. State Rep. Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, voted against it. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine proposed increasing the current 28-cents-per-gallon tax by 18 cents a gallon and also wanted automatic increases after that, indexed to inflation. He said Thursday the House bill's "far from ideal" and he plans to work with the Senate to improve it."His efforts are going to be more challenging in the Senate than in the House," Arndt predicted in an interview with the Register. "We tried to work with the governor."The president of the Senate, Larry Obhof, has suggested cutting the state income tax to balance raising the gas tax.Arndt said the state income tax pays for education, the prison system and Medicaid. Arndt asked where cuts would be made if the state income tax is cut."Point to it," he said. The road bill also would provide public transit with $100 million a year in federal transportation funds. DeWine proposed $40 million. House Democrats said they were pleased they won a hike in public transportation money, a top priority for the Democratic caucus. DeWine suggested giving 60 percent of the new gas tax money to the state, with 40 percent to go to local governments. The House changed that split to 55 percent for the state and 45 percent for local governments.Arndt, a former county commissioner, said he knows local governments in his district — Erie and Ottawa counties — need the money to cope with the millions of visitors who come here every summer.Arndt said he also was able to obtain a provision in House Bill 62 that allows money from the Roadwork Development Fund to be used to improve access to tourist attractions.The money has been used for industrial facilities that produce jobs, but Arndt said that tourism is what produces jobs in his district.Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this report. State Rep. Steve Arndt