The Citizens First Congress, a grassroots group, is urging its members to call legislators to oppose HB1346, which would raid general revenues to pay for highway construction.
The bill isn’t on the House calendar today because of resistance from Gov. Asa Hutchinson. But it has a lot of support. The governor says the budget is tight and can’t give up money from other programs to pay for highways. If we need the highway money the construction lobby insists is needed, it’s time to make users pay for it through additional taxes on fuel, either by the gallon or sales tax.
Citizens First calls the bill “highway robbery.”
The bill would take funds away from K-12 education, juvenile justice, pre-k and child care for our youngest children and other critical services and use it to pay for highways and roads.
Find your legislator here and tell them taking money from quality pre-K and education is an extreme and unacceptable way to fund highways — Vote NO on HB1346.
Highways are certainly important to Arkansas but there are better alternatives to fund highways and other infrastructure needs in Arkansas that won’t gut important other priorities in the state budget.