FINANCING ROADS

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 73, 30 March 1929, Page 22

FINANCING ROADS

HOW AMERICA DOES IT

FEES AND GASOLINE

While the greater portion of the annual State road income is derived from. inotor v vehicle fees and gasoline taxation, receipts from sales of State- highway road and bridge bonds and from notes for 1926 and 1927 ranked third and federal-aid appropriations fourth as sources of revenue. In 1923, 1924, and 1925, motor vehicles fees headed the list, State bond revenues were second, JB'ederal-aid funds ranked third, transferred funds from counties ranked fourth, and gasoline taxation fifth.

The latest available figures of 1927 show that 12 per cent, of the total State road income of 739,765,258 dollars or 90,979,230 dollars was derived from tho sale of highway road and bridge bonds and from notes; 35 per cent, or 259,854,786 dollars was derived from motor vehicle fees, and slightly lesa than 23 per cent, or 169,818,473 dollars was derived from gasolene taxation. Federal-aid amounting*to 80,----459,671 dollars formed 10 per cent, of the total.

Of the total county and township road income for 1927 of 840,613,923 dollars, about 21J per cent., or 181,080,953 dollars, was derived from the salo of bonds, which is more than double the sum received by these subdivisions from motor vehicle fees and gas taxation, amounting respectively to 40,239,856 dollars and 48,860,508 dollars. Bond revenues ranged second in the counties' total income, exceeded only by the •105,219,774 dollars'.local road tax levy. Bond revenues have ranged second in the counties' annual income for several years.

According to latest available figures, 31 States have an outstanding State road and bridge bond indebtedness of 560,000,000 dollars. The county and township bonded" indebtedness for roads in 45 States is 1,386,338,000 dollars.

In the recent election, lowa, by voting an issue of 100,000,000 dollars, brought tho total number of States with issues of.State bonds outstanding to 32. In tho fall elections, Missouri, West Virginia, and Louisiana also voted additional credits of 155,000,000 dollars to those already authorised for road and bridge improvement. All of the recent bond issues were made possible by amendment of State constitutions.

Interest on State road bonds, as well as retirement of principal, in 25 States is paid wholly or in part from either the motor vehicle fees or from gasoline taxation, and in some States from both. The interest and principal on the lowa State bonds will be paid by motor vehicle fees and gasoline taxation. For 1927 the States having bond issues reported a sale of 76,825,000 dollars of State road and bridge bonds, hearing an interest rate of from 3 to 5 per cent., and a sale of 194,301,000 dollars of county bonds with an interest rate of from 4} to 6 per cent. The average interest rate on all State road and bridge bonds sold in the past 33 years is 4.35 per cent. State road bonds were issued as early as 1894- by Massachusetts. In 1906 Rhode Island and New York adopted the plan. In 1908, Maryland joined the ranks; in 1909, California and New Hampshire floated issues; in 1911, Utah and Idaho; in 1912, New Mexico; in 1913, Maine; in 1917, Delaware and Oregon; in 1918, Louisiana; in 1919 Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Wyoming; in 1920, Colorado, Missouri, New Jersey and West -Virginia. ''