Report: Pa. Gas Taxes Highest in the Nation

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The good news? Gas is pretty cheap these days — as low as $2.02 a gallon in the Philadelphia area, according to one website.

The not-quite-as-thrilling news? The gas isn’t quite as cheap as it could be: Pennsylvania now has the highest gas taxes in the country.

“Pennsylvania has passed New York and California by earning the dubious distinction of having the highest gasoline taxes in the nation, ” Greg Laskoski writes at GasBuddy.com. “Combined with the federal gas tax of 18.4 cents per gallon, Pennsylvania’s state tax of 50.5 cpg. brings the combined tax to 68.9 cents per gallon.  Californians pay 63.7 cents per gal., New Yorkers pay 63.4 cents per gal., according to the American Petroleum Institute.”

Those taxes, though, are being used to benefit drivers: They’re being raised by the state’s latest transportation law — signed by then-Gov. Tom Corbett — to pay for road and bridge repairs across the state. Those extra cents at the pump are the price paid for a relatively smooth and safe ride on Pennsylvania roads.

“We saw at least 1,600 miles of roadway improvements just this year because of Act 89,” PennDOT spokeswoman Erin Waters-Trasatt told the blog, referring to the transportation law. “People are going to see the amount of work continue to increase. These are projects that have been on the backburner for years and they’ll continue to see these improvements in 2015 and beyond.”

Corbett has also paid the price: His signing of the bill was considered a tax increase by many Republicans, and cost him the support of much of his party during election season last year. It’s one factor in why he lost to Gov. Tom Wolf during last year’s election.

(Hat tip: PennLive)