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Repeal of the 4.3 cents per gallon RR fuel tax

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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by futuremodal [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear Dave- Its a good thing that we still have that pesky Constitution that makes what you are suggesting not only illegal but unconstitutional. What you suggest is confiscatory in more than one way and I hate to break it to you, but when you want to tax someone and/or force them to spend capital in a particular way at best that is reregulation and at worst outright confiscation. We live in a free enterprise system, where do you live? LC [/quote] LC, Let me see if I've got this straight. It's perfectly okay for the railroads to beg the federal government for financial aid to pay for infrastructure improvements (presumably out of the general fund or worse yet, the ultimate hypocrasy, taking this rail infrastructure improvement money out of the highway trust fund), but if the feds tax the railroads' fuel use to make this payment, somehow that is illegal and unconstitutional?! Hmmmm.... If it was legal and constitutional to tax the railroads 4.3 cents per gallon for federal deficit reduction, why then would it be illegal and unconstitutional to tax them in the same vein for rail infrastructure improvements, aid by the way that is being lobbied for by the railroads? You'll have to explain this dichotomy. [/quote] Dave- I didn't say that all taxes are unconstitutional. I said that your little scheme is both illegal and unconstitutional. After you have been to law school we'll talk. FOr now, I doubt you'd understand the answer... LC [/quote] LC, The fact is this: Taxing the fuel use of railroads to pay for federal aid for rail infrastructure upgrades is perfectly legal and constitutional, as legal and constitutional as taxing people's income and highway users gasoline use to pay for federal aid for rail infrastructure improvements. Unless you can come up with the reasons why you think taxing railroad fuel use is unconstitutional in light of the railroads' demands for federal intervention to help pay for capacity upgrades, it seems that you are the one in need of some schooling...
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