The following is an editorial piece from Delegates Kathy Szeliga and Ryan Nawrocki.

Another day, another way of trying to take money from Marylanders’ pockets seems to be the theme of Annapolis. Governor Moore has already asked for “Moore” than over 250 new fee increases in this legislative session. Now, Maryland liberals have introduced HB1070, which would require the Maryland Transportation Authority to increase toll rates, making it more expensive for all of us drivers.

Not only are tax and fee increases contributing to the skyrocketing cost of living, but proposed legislation will also increase the cost of driving which will make it hard for Maryland drivers to afford to stay on the road.

Over the past few weeks, The Maryland Department of Transportation assumed $81 million in annual revenue from budget increases, such as BWI parking, MVAs, and Port Administration fees. A bill was also introduced to increase the cost of buying a new vehicle. It will increase the vehicle excise tax from 6% to 6.5% and exclude the trade-in value of your current vehicle. That means if you purchase a $40,000 vehicle with a $20,000 trade-in vehicle, you will pay $2,600 in vehicle taxes instead of the current $1,200. That’s more than double the taxes on a $40,000 vehicle!

House Bill 1070, in addition to the existing financial burden on Maryland drivers, is poised to escalate tolls by hundreds of millions of dollars. This bill, if passed, would divert these funds to purposes other than maintaining the bridges and highways for which these tolls were originally intended. This means that you, as a motorist, will be contributing to mass transit projects in other regions, not for the roads you drive on.

Most Maryland drivers don’t use mass transit because they own a vehicle. So, increasing the toll on Maryland drivers to subsidize a service they don’t use is yet another way to hurt our district’s hard-working residents. In Maryland, less than 8% of people use mass transit.

This bill essentially establishes a transportation slush fund to raise money from your wallet to fund costly and unnecessary projects in areas like the Washington, D.C. suburbs. This fee hike is not only out of touch; it’s irresponsible because it forces drivers to pay more, and we don’t expect the same from public transit riders. Last year, the Maryland General Assembly lifted all farebox recovery expectations from the MTA. Farebox recovery is the amount of money people pay to ride mass transit. This means that we expect to fully subsidize MTA ridership through other means like tolls. This isn’t fair to Maryland’s motorists.

These bad policies all stem from the same issue: the out-of-control spending in Annapolis. According to Maryland liberals, responsible spending is not a solution, neither are spending cuts. The solution to funding issues proposed by this leadership has been to increase taxes and fees on everyday Marylanders, contributing to the incredibly high cost of living and inflation that has decimated Marylanders over the past few years. Instead of choosing to get a grip on out-of-control spending or trying to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse, Maryland liberals are once again relying on hard-working Marylanders to bail out their dangerous spending habits.

Governor Martin O’Malley said, “a fee is a tax.” Make no mistake: this toll increase is a tax on Maryland drivers to take your hard-earned dollars and send them to bloated public transportation projects in other districts that you will likely never use.

We stand firmly against this legislation and will fight it with all our might. Our goal is to keep costs low for Maryland taxpayers and drivers. With soaring inflation and high living costs, the last thing Marylanders need is more taxes and fees. We will continue to battle against these increases to protect the interests of everyday Marylanders and keep the cost of living and driving affordable.