Assembly Wilk Fights Against The Hidden Tax Increase

Posted by: KHTS FM 98.1 & AM 1220 in Politics August 15, 2014 - 2:10 pm 0 171 Views

Assemblyman Scott Wilk (R- Santa Clarita) made an effort to convince Governor Brown to stop the California Air Resources Board from extending a program to transport fuels in hopes of stopping the gas tax increase beginning Jan. 1, officials said.

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Assemblyman Scott Wilk (R- Santa Clarita) made an effort to convince Governor Brown to stop the California Air Resources Board from extending a program to transport fuels in hopes of stopping the gas tax increase beginning Jan. 1, officials said.

“Governor Brown needs to reign in the CARB and stop application of their cap and trade program to transportation fuels; he has the power to do it,” said Wilk. ”Some Democrats in the Legislature have proposed delaying implementation but that’s just not good enough.”

Accordingly, Wilk joined a number of his colleagues in co-authoring Senate Bill 1079 by Senator Andy Vidak, (R-Hanford), which will exempt specified transportation fuels, including gasoline, diesel, and natural gas, from the state’s cap-and-trade program, according to the press release.

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“I am all for clean air and doing what we can to mitigate climate change, but not for a dubious program, not at the expense of our economy and not with a regressive tax,” stated Wilk. “Low-and middle-income residents, who already dedicate much of their household budget to transportation, cannot absorb such a huge increase in gas prices; higher fuel prices also means higher prices for necessities such as food,” Wilk continued.

CARB’s planned expansion makes transportation fuels subject to its cap and trade program, resulting in a 13-50 cent per gallon gas price increase for consumers, according to a study by the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office.

As a result, “California’s small businesses and consumers face significant economic harm from fuel price increases and this bill prevents big government from harming our already struggling economy.”

The 38th Assembly District encompasses Simi Valley, the northwestern section of the San Fernando Valley and most of the Santa Clarita Valley.