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Car taxes needed
Car taxes needed
Before Washington's voters decide whether to approve Initiative 695 and repeal
the Motor Vehicle Excise Tax, they might want to consider where the revenue
from the tax goes. Hint: It doesn't stay in Olympia, cushioning the carpet in
some bureaucrat's office.
Instead, MVET revenue returns to the localities where we live.
It is budgeted to pay for long-sought projects to smooth and unclog the roads
that we drive on every day. For details, visit the Internet at www.wsdot.wa.gov/I-695.
In addition, MVET revenue goes to city and county government, local health
districts and local bus service. In Spokane County, local agencies expect $23.5
million next year from MVET. In Whitman County, $2.2 million. In Stevens County,
$1.4 million ... For full details, visit the Internet at www.ofm.wa.gov/i-695/tab3.xls.
MVET is paying for police officers, nurses, bus drivers and more. It took
years of political struggle for cities and counties to extract this aid from
competing needs in state government. How easy might it be to replace these dollars
if they disappear? Think it over.
John Webster/For the editorial board
