SEN. WILSON SPEAKS OUT FOR 6-CENT GAS TAX; LT. GOVERNOR HOPEFUL IN AREA

Legislation to raise the 11-cents-per-gallon motor fuels tax by 6 cents is "the fastest way to jumpstart the economy," state Sen. Roger B. Wilson, D-Columbia, said Friday.

Wilson, who heads the Senate appropriations committee and is running for lieutenant governor, voiced support for the gas tax during a campaign swing through Southeast Missouri.

He also voiced support for legislation to earmark Missouri lottery revenue for education, and said he would work to include some funding in the 1993 fiscal year state budget for construction of a new business school at Southeast Missouri State University.

At a press conference on the university campus, Wilson said the fuel tax would be a boost to the state's economy, both in terms of construction jobs and in road improvements.

The 6-cent fuel tax would be phased in over five years and would help finance a 15-year road construction project throughout the state. Under an amendment added by the Missouri House, the tax would expire in 2008.

The 6-cent tax would bring in about $450 million in federal money, compared with the $250 million the state now gets. Over the 15-year period, the measure would raise an estimated $12.6 billion in state and federal revenue for road projects.

The House gave final approval to the measure last week and Senate approval is expected soon.

Wilson said unemployment in the highway industry now stands at about 40 percent. "We have a chance to turn unemployment statistics into tax-producing statistics," he said.

Supporters of the measure say it would put about 7,800 people to work on construction projects this summer and curb traffic fatalities through improved roads.

Wilson said the tax would allow the state to take advantage of a 4-to-1 match in federal highway money.

"The whole Bootheel gets a tremendous boost," said Wilson, explaining that the tax measure would mean increased road construction in the region.

"To play around with it and delay it any longer is in the economic worst interest of the state," he said.

State Sen. John Dennis, D-Benton, attended the press conference with Wilson. Dennis, vice chairman of the Senate transportation committee, predicted the tax measure will win Senate passage and be signed by Gov. John Ashcroft.

As to the lottery, Wilson said that Missourians were under the misconception that lottery money would be earmarked for education. The fact that the money has not been earmarked for education has been a concern to Missouri voters. "The lottery arrangement was one of several arguments that defeated Proposition B (the tax and reform measure for education)," he said.

Wilson said he and other legislators believe that it's time to resolve the issue by earmarking lottery money for education.

State Sen. Danny Staples, D-Eminence, has proposed a constitutional amendment to earmark lottery revenue for education.

Wilson has proposed a measure outlining how the lottery money would be used.

The measure calls for the money to be used for early childhood screenings, increased funding for the Parents As Teachers program, purchase of equipment, "endowed chairs" on a matching funds basis for public colleges and universities, and establishment of a scholarship fund for students of low- and middle-income families.

"There is an obligation to remove barriers to education," he said. "Education, that is the bedrock of our state and that is the future of our state," said Wilson, whose candidacy was recently endorsed by the Southeast Missouri Superintendents Association.

Wilson said he would like to see the earmarking of lottery money for education phased in over 10 years. After 10 years, as much as $75 million in lottery revenue could be going to education, with about half of that going to higher education and the other half to elementary and secondary education, he said.

Wilson said that ultimately there are three options for increasing funding for education in Missouri. "One is to cut services, one is to raise taxes, and the third is to borrow. "The third I absolutely rule out completely. You can't borrow your way out of a bad situation," he said.

Wilson said that improving the state's economy would help the funding situation. "Let's get the economy on the rebound and that will take care of part of the problem."

Then, he said, voters might be more willing to consider a tax increase. But for now, said Wilson, there's no support among lawmakers for a tax increase for education in the aftermath of the defeat of Proposition B last November.

Wilson said he favors putting some money in the state budget for construction of a new business school at Southeast in order to keep the project moving along.

"I want to get it in the budget even if it is an amount of money that won't build a complete wall, much less the whole building," he said.