After disaster: N.J. wants someone else to pay for rebuilding infrasructure
Researchers at the Mineta National Transit Research Consortium surveyed New Jersey residents approximately five months after Superstorm Sandy struck the East Coast in October of 2012 in what seemed to be a perfect test case of a population that had seen first-hand what natural disasters could do to a region.
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A cleanup effort after Superstorm Sandy. Credit: Walt Jennings/Wikimedia Commons |
The research was meant to determine whether these New Jersey
residents agreed that there was a need for increased spending on
infrastructure, and whether they would be willing to pay for it
via increased taxes.
The responses were divided into those who were willing to be
taxed directly via mechanisms such as a gasoline or sales tax --
with a five-year sunset provision -- and those who were willing
for "others" to be taxed, preferring a hotel/recreation tax or
the issuance of bonds, thereby transferring responsibility to
tourists, or to a future generation.
The peer-reviewed report Funding Resilient Infrastructure in New
Jersey: Attitudes Following a Natural Disaster reveals that,
while residents agreed that transportation infrastructure did
need to be rebuilt and improved, majorities did not support
raising their own taxes -- even for small amounts or for a
limited time -- to pay for it.
"There seems to be -- not just among New Jersey's political
elites, but also among its mass public -- a 'kick the can down
the road' attitude toward paying for infrastructure and
maintenance," noted Robert B. Noland, primary researcher and
author of the report.
The study found a correlation with being "left-leaning" and being more willing to embrace one of the "tax me" alternatives presented for raising revenue, such as gasoline, sales, or income tax.
A potential limitation of the study was its lack of specifics in explaining exactly how the funds would be used.
"It is possible that support would be higher when survey questions provide more detail on specific transportation investments. Many regions have passed successful taxation referendums in this way," Noland said, pointing out that further research is needed to see if this approach would soften public attitudes toward short-term taxes to reinforce and improve necessary infrastructure.
The need to educate the public about infrastructure needs is tremendous, in New Jersey and in the nation at large; maintenance needs are increasing, as is the prospect of heightened natural disasters due to climate change. Revenue from the federal gasoline tax is insufficient and declining in real terms, the report concludes.
For more:
- see the
report
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