In March, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer proposed a regressive .45-cent-per-gallon gas tax that would raise $2.1 billion for the state's much needed road repairs.
We pointed out that the tax would hit the state’s poorest residents the hardest, and the proposal comes after Michigan cut business taxes by about $2 billion over the last eight years under the GOP and Rick-Snyder-led government.
Thus, requiring corporations to once again pay their fair share seems like a better alternative than asking all motorists regardless of income to cover the gap.
Last week, state House Democrats proposed doing just that by boosting the state's corporate income tax from 6 percent to 8.5 percent while raising taxes on flow-through entities, which could generate $800 million annually.
The Associated Press reports that an additional vehicle-miles-traveled tax on the two heaviest classes of trucks would generate $390 million, while the new bridge tolls would raise about $50 million.
The logic is pretty simple — heavy trucks do the most damage to the roads, and corporate tax rates are absurdly low, so it's time for them to kick in some more money.
The proposal is relatively modest when one considers that Michigan businesses collectively paid $0 in taxes in 2016 and little in each year since.…