When it comes to federal outlays to states for transportation funding, all 50 (plus the District of Columbia) are all above average. That is they all receive more than one dollar of federal funding for every dollar of gas tax they contribute, according to a new GAO report.
That’s made possible by the backfilling of the Highway Trust Fund with general revenues to make up for declining gas tax revenues.
In the current budget environment, that arrangement is unsustainable. However, over at the Post, Brad Plumer notes that the elimination of the doner state vs. donee debate may provide finally an impetus for reform of our Rube Goldberg-esque transportation financing system.