Other options to fund roads

Our Republican Legislature once again is sending a mixed message, thanks to the influence of big-business lobbying. The message: "To avoid raising taxes, state services are to be paid for by those who use the services; but we'll make a big exception for big trucking."

There is no doubt that Missouri's road infrastructure needs additional funds to fix crumbling highways and collapsing bridges; but there is also no doubt that Missouri's higher education infrastructure needs additional state funding to reduce tuition costs and allow students to graduate without enormous loan debt.

The problem is that college students don't have lobbyists. The trucking industry does.

For three decades our legislature has let soaring "user fees" (tuition) cover the costs of inflation, building maintenance, enrollment growth and new technology needed to operate our public universities, instead of paying those new costs from new state revenues such as a dedicated sales tax.

If our lawmakers applied the same "user fee" philosophy to the needed increase in transportation infrastructure funding, we would be asked to approve an increase in the fuel tax and/or converting interstate highways to toll roads -- not a sales tax.

I'd gladly support a fuel tax increase and/or toll roads, so both I and the big trucks could pay our fair share of highway maintenance costs. Since those proposals are not before the voters on Aug. 5, I believe a "no" vote on the sales tax proposal (Constitutional Amendment 7) is the correct decision.

ART WALLHAUSEN, Cape Girardeau