Gas tax? Use your head, Governor Doyle!

You do not have to be a financial guru to figure this out.

State's proposed profits levy likely to be passed along

If Governor Doyle charges oil companies an excessive tax for doing business in the state of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin consumer will absorb the cost.

We all studied "supply and demand" in junior high school.

A typical junior high school student can grasp this concept.

Why our governor cannot grasp this concept is beyond me.

If an oil company sells a gallon of gasoline to the state of Illinois for a .10 profit and they sell a gallon of gasoline to the state of Wisconsin and only make a .09 profit- why would they sell gas to Wisconsin? Common sense tells us that the oil companies would prefer to sell to Illinois and not to Wisconsin.

The supply of gasoline sent to Wisconsin would then be shorted. If there is not enough supply to meet the demand of Wisconsin drivers, the cost of gas would go up in Wisconsin.

It is just that simple.

Speaking of common sense...

Since we now know that oil companies made record profits off of Wisconsin consumers, doesn't it stand to reason that the Wisconsin government also charged record gas taxes?

As it is, for every gallon of gasoline we purchase in Wisconsin, the state receives almost $.33 per gallon(oil companies only make about $.22 profit per gallon). Only 6 states charge more in gas taxes than the state of Wisconsin.

If oil companies are selling record amounts of gas, that means the Wisconsin government is collecting record amounts in gas taxes. At least, a little common sense leads us to believe this.

Anyone with a little common sense also recognizes that when Governor Doyle swiped nearly $1 billion out of the transportation fund to pay for other expenses, this means that we can no longer afford all of the roadwork that was planned.

We already paid our taxes to cover necessary roadwork. Now the money is gone from the transportation fund.

Governor Doyle would like us to pay these taxes again.

Governor Doyle can stamp his foot and throw a hissy fit, but common sense will prevail.

Use your head, Governor Doyle!

If you charge the companies more to do business in Wisconsin, then the companies charge the Wisconsin consumer more for goods and services.