Just As We Thought The Gas Tax Increase Isn't For The Roads

You can blame Obamacare and Governor Rick Snyder for our roads not being repaired.

Senator Patrick Colbeck

Governor Snyder stepped into it, as they say, when he pushed through the Medicaid Expansion also known on the radio at the Healthy Michigan Plan. 

By offering free medical care to some it is we the taxpayers that have to pay for it.   This is nothing more than distribution of wealth and fits the classic definition of socialism.

To now pay for this medicaid expansion Governor Rick Snyder is pushing for a gas tax increase.  The voters in May of this year shot down a tax increase by an overwhelming margin of 80%.

State Senator Patrick Colbeck, who has a plan to fix our roads without raising our taxes confirmed this today in a facebook post of his:

"Many of you are wondering why it is so difficult to pass legislation that would fix our roads. Simple answer...some people insist upon it being about much more than roads. According to Gongwer News Service (not yet addressed in SE MI papers), one of the sticking points in the most recent negotiations revolved around increasing the Health Insurance Claims Assessment (HICA) tax. "What does HICA have to do with roads" you say? HICA revenue goes to pay the state portion of Medicaid payments. OK...what does Medicaid have to do with roads?

The short answer is that some people in state government are relying upon a tax increase to backfill gaps in Medicaid funding with the same money that the House and Senate plans have already earmarked for roads. This problem becomes exacerbated in 2017 due to the passage of Medicaid Expansion (i.e. Section 2001 of HR 3590 otherwise known as Obamacare). In 2017, the Federal government will no longer provide 100% of the funding for the expanded Medicaid population.

So...if you are wondering why it is so difficult to fix our roads, look no further than Medicaid Expansion. The good news is that I have offered solutions to both Medicaid Expansion and our Roads that protect you from tax increases."

Another Lansing legislator State House Republican Peter Lucido of Shelby Township also has a plan to fix our roads without raising taxes.  

Between these two plans we should be able to fix our roads.  As for the Medicaid expansion problem?  That is something Governor Rick Snyder will have to figure out.  That plan was forced upon the people of Michigan after it failed on the first vote.  And now that the people of Michigan are seeing that the Medicaid Expansion is holding up our roads being repaired, I would have to believe it is even less popular than it was two years ago.