The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance mailed a letter to every state lawmaker and elected municipal official in Massachusetts regarding the proposed Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) gasoline tax. The letter, which may be found by clicking here, is intended to educate local leaders on the realities of the tax scheme.

“MassFiscal’s letter explains how eliminating the legislative procedure is a very slippery slope for Massachusetts. Whether you support this gas tax hike or not, it’s wrong of the Governor to pursue a tax increase without a legislative vote. Lawmakers are being completely excluded from the process, despite making judgments on taxes, increases like this are the exact task they were elected to carry out,” stated Paul Diego Craney, spokesperson for Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance.

“Even though this is a tax on gasoline and diesel fuel, a large portion of the revenue is said to be going to be redirected to the MBTA and not our bridges, roads, highways. Outside of select insiders on Beacon Hill, few people know about this backdoor attempt to raise our gas tax. We’re just trying to raise awareness. Municipal officials, especially those elected outside of Boston and its immediate environs, will understand better than most how harmful a major increase in the gas tax will be. Their constituents don’t have a choice how often or when they drive, and they will feel helpless in the face of rising commuting costs,” concluded Craney.