HB 673 has one delegate disappointed

MARYLAND – Maryland lawmakers are passing a bill that impacts transit service fees.

But some Republican delegates are disappointed that the bill didn’t get further amendments. House bill 673 will repeal certain requirements to increase those fees according to the consumer price index. Delegate Tom Hutchinson proposed an amendment to stop using the CPI on fuel tax.

He says eventually Marylanders will face a 62 million dollar increase in fuel tax and the amendment could have softened that blow. “I was disappointed there going to pull out the CPI increase for mass transit, yet we fought to get the CPI increase through an amendment on that bill off of the fuel tax and the fuel tax hits us very hard on the Eastern Shore because we don’t mass transit.

Delegate Hutchinson says this is especially pressing on the eastern shore as most residents rely on their own vehicles to get around. The delegate says this will only lead to the Eastern Shore bearing the burden of the fuel tax while denser areas see a break in transit.