Critics of the proposed Constitutional Amendment 7 - the creation of a ¾ of a cent sales tax with revenues being directed to road and transportation projects - have used Missouri's trucking industry as a scapegoat, according to one trucking industry leader.
The St. Louis-based group called Missourians for Better Transportation Solutions, which is opposing the proposed amendment, blames the trucking industry for passing the expense of maintaining Missouri's aging infrastructure to middle and lower socio-economic Missourians while the corporations within the industry itself pays nothing.
The website for group reads as the trucking industry "will pay practically nothing and they will benefit the most from it and do the most damage to the our roads."
Ross Nichols, director of governmental affairs for the Missouri Trucking Association, said the criticism is widely off-base and unfair.
"We may not be contributing as companies (to the sales tax), but we certainly are as individuals," Nichols said. Nichols pointed that every industry in the state uses Missouri roadways and to single out the trucking industry "as not paying their fair share" is misleading to the public.
"It irks me a lot when people bring that up," Nichols said. "We do not dispute that our industry damages Missouri's roads more than personal vehicles, but we also pay 40 percent of the established taxes already. We pay our fair share."
Nichols said the trucking industry agrees with two of the opponents' critiques of the amendment - the motor fuel tax needs to be increased and something needs to be done to maintain the state's aging infrastructure.
The opposition group has said they would prefer to see Missourians reject Amendment 7 on Aug. 5 and send the measure back to the state legislature, where they would lobby for it to be reworked as a motor fuel tax increase.
Nichols said the trucking industry would still like to see the sales tax pass in August and a continued discussion on raising the motor fuel tax in the halls of Missouri government.
"In real life, we would rather have an increased motor fuel tax too," Nichols said. "However, to raise the amount of money the Missouri Department of Transportation would need to complete the scope or the amount of these projects it would have to wait 20 or 30 years to get that amount (through a motor fuel tax)."
Nichols said he doubts the state's motor fuel tax will be raised anytime soon as Missourians have historically disliked the idea of raising the state's gasoline tax of 17 cents per gallon, one of the nation's lowest. According to the American Petroleum Institute, which tracks motor fuel taxes throughout the country, Missouri's motor fuel tax is 3.51 cents lower than the national average and ahead of seven other states.
"My guess is that Missourians would march to Jefferson City in droves," Nichols said. "Missourians hate the idea of raising the state's motor fuel tax."
Another point of contention between the trucking industry and Missourians for Better Transportation Solutions is the use of toll roads as an alternative funding source.
"We are for any other form of funding than toll roads," Nichols said. "At this point in time, toll roads are not an appropriate response to lack of transportation funding in the state."
Nichols said he hopes that Missourians will approve Amendment 7.
"Amendment 7 is our best case to get this reasonable amount of money to get a large sum of (transportation) projects accomplished that are important to Missouri," Nichols said. "Amendment 7 gives us 10 years to determine the best way to fund transportation, rather that be ultimately raising the motor fuel tax, or something else, but for now we must do something to address this crisis of highway funding in Missouri."