Road Taxes, Funding

Nebraska Drivers Pay Little

I hate posting a short note, but this one is important. Everyone in Omaha thinks the roads should be better, but the very people using the roads are not paying much for it.

The Tax Foundation put out a report on how much drivers pay for the roads by state (https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/state-road-taxes-funding/). I have disagreements with the Tax Foundation but I was stunned and alarmed as to how low Nebraska ranks. Omaha has a wheel tax which many complain about, but it is reasonable. However, the wheel tax for commercial vehicles is still too low considering how it is implemented. Unfortunately, it is merely based on tonnage and not commercial status.

In Nebraska, you need a car, a truck or some mode of transportation. In part, I can understand why nearly everyone tolerates paying taxes for the roads, but the users really need to pay more. Unfortunately, Nebraska governments rely too heavily on property taxes to pay for the roads.