redneckin

May I suggest taxing bike riders?

Alabama's media is begining to aggressively push the idea of toll road.

"In addition, toll roads and bridges can help. Private companies are often willing to construct roads and bridges on popular motorist routes that states and local governments can't afford to build. They pay for the projects and make a profit by charging vehicles to use the spans."

Business Week takes a hard look
"But are investors getting an even better deal? It's a question with major policy implications as governments relinquish control of major public assets for years to come. The aggressive toll hikes embedded in deals all but guarantee pain for lower-income citizens—and enormous profits for the buyers."

Privatizing roads, sewer systems, law enforcement, prisons,.....Is there a core fuction of government besides overseeing contracts let to private businessies in the citizens name?

Now we arrive at the point of this post, that of registering and taxing bicycles. Oh, it wouldn’t be a revenue enhancement, just a way to help recover stolen property and collect sales tax on these high dollar, hybrid, carbon bikes. By the way, you do know where the carbon comes from to construct these environmentally friendly bikes, don’t you?

Bikes, unlike ATVs, are primarily used on public roads and other public routes while paying no fuel taxes. If bike riders use roads, trails, river walks, and bike lanes which are built with transportation dollars funded by registrations and fuel taxes, why shouldn’t bike riders be required to contribute?

There would, of course, be designer tags in addition the ho-hum regular state issue to boost the non-revenue enhancement. These tags would be required to be affixed in a manner that would allow law enforcement officers to read without stopping the biker unless it was for public indecency such as "peddling crack with out a liscense

Besides large numbers staying in their tent cities, most bike riders fuel up on granola bars and other “near” foods, it would be impractical to impose a “skinny“ tax on fast food eateries. Instead, I propose, we mandate that odometers be permanently affixed to the bikes and every year when they are re-registered, bikers would pay by the mile. It wouldn’t be a revenue enhancement, just a way to ensure, bike riders pay their fair share.

Now that brings us to not-revenue enhancing from the walkers. Any suggestions?

posted at 08:59:49 on 05/04/07 by Chuck Myguts - Category: Alabama