Attention-Grabbing

The Chairman and CEO of the US’ largest chain of car dealerships is calling for ongoing increases in the federal tax on gasoline in an effort to encourage conservation and alter buying patterns.

Mike Jackson, CEO of the $19-billion auto retailer AutoNation, is proposing an annual, open-ended increase of $0.10 per gallon.

Interesting proposal. I'm still unconvinced that a gasoline tax is doable or likely to be effective. For each $0.10 the government taxed on gasoline, it would raise approximately $14 billion annually. Meanwhile, a $1 tax on each barrel of oil drilled or imported would raise about $30 billion annually in the US, would barely be noticed in gasoline prices, and would be borne more equally throughout the economy, unlike a highly regressive gasoline tax. On top of that, the Apollo Alliance estimates that the US could be weaned off of oil for about $300 billion over ten years. Gee. Is anyone else having an idea?

Even if the Apollo Alliance is off by a factor of 2 or 3, a $2 or $3 tax on a barrel of oil would hardly be noticed when the barrel costs $65-70.