One gas-tax repeal effort gains steam, another is fading
The Buzz is the Register’s weekly political news column.
Assemblyman and gubernatorial candidate Travis Allen was the first to prepare a ballot measure calling for the repeal the state’s new gas tax, but a second proposal is gaining momentum while Allen’s is poised to die.
The Huntington Beach Republican submitted his plan to state elections officials in June, but has since been engaged in legally wrangling over the title given the measure by Attorney General Xavier Becerra.
The 12-cent per gallon hike effective Nov .1 — along with an increase in the vehicle license fee — is designed to pay for $52 billion in road and transportation improvements over the next decade. Becerra’s title focuses on the improvements and doesn’t mention the tax.
While Allen succeeded in winning a Superior Court ruling to have the title include the words “repeals gas tax,” Becerra prevailed on appeal and on Wednesday the state Supreme Court announced it would allow the appeals court ruling to stand.
Becerra’s title: “Eliminates Recently Enacted Road Repair and Transportation Funding by Repealing Revenues Dedicated for Those Purposes. Initiative Statute.”
