Out of gasoline: Officials react as talk of upping fuel tax diminishes

Officials of departments responsible for local roads said the uncertainty surrounding that funding mechanism has yet to affect their confidence in financing future projects. They do stress the need for a long-term solution, however.

Falling gasoline prices spurred discussion in Washington, D.C. of increasing the current 18.4-cents-per-gallon gas tax and 24.4-cents-per-gallon diesel tax, neither of which have been touched since 1993. The taxes supply about $34 billion a year to the federal government's Highway Trust Fund, which allocates money for highway and transit programs all over the U.S.

More fuel-efficient cars, Americans driving less and rising construction costs also contribute to the need to supplement the fund.

The Highway Trust Fund has been the main source of federal transportation aid for more than 60 years and is currently funded through May 2015.

Discussions on an increase have quieted down in the Capitol, however, with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, announcing recently there wouldn't be enough votes in the House for such an increase.

U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, R-Indiana, opposes the proposal.

"Hoosiers are already paying almost half their income in local, state and federal taxes, so Washington needs to look for other ways to address this problem than simply raising the gas tax," he said in an email.

Cass County Highway Superintendent Jeff Smith said the county receives federal match funding for capital projects like the four-phase, $10 million restoration of 400 South between Ind. 25 and Ind. 29 slated for late 2015. The highway department is also counting on federal funds to restore the 18th Street bridge that crosses the Wabash River in 2018, he added.

Smith said the state provides the department a formula each year to apply when planning its budget and that the condition of the federal Highway Trust Fund has yet to alter any plans.

"We haven't seen any big decreases or increases in the numbers they gave us to prepare the 2015 budget," he said.

That doesn't mean the state of the trust fund isn't on his mind, especially with funding yet to be secured for the final phase of the 400 South project.

"That will depend on how much federal money is available or if it's available," Smith said.

It can make for a difficult situation, he continued.

"From where I sit, it's kind of a two-edge sword," Smith said. "I don't like to see tax increases, but from my day job here, we have to have money to maintain the infrastructure and it has to come from somewhere."

Logansport Superintendent of Public Works Dan Williams estimated the city's street department gets 15 to 20 percent of its funds for road repairs from the federal government.

He said the uncertainty regarding the federal Highway Trust Fund did not have an effect on his most recent budget preparations.

Smith said the state provides the department a formula each year to apply when planning its budget and that the condition of the federal Highway Trust Fund has yet to alter any plans.

"We haven't seen any big decreases or increases in the numbers they gave us to prepare the 2015 budget," he said.

That doesn't mean the state of the trust fund isn't on his mind, especially with funding yet to be secured for the final phase of the 400 South project.

"That will depend on how much federal money is available or if it's available," Smith said.

It can make for a difficult situation, he continued.

"From where I sit, it's kind of a two-edge sword," Smith said. "I don't like to see tax increases, but from my day job here, we have to have money to maintain the infrastructure and it has to come from somewhere."

Logansport Superintendent of Public Works Dan Williams estimated the city's street department gets 15 to 20 percent of its funds for road repairs from the federal government.

He said the uncertainty regarding the federal Highway Trust Fund did not have an effect on his most recent budget preparations.

"That was taken into consideration when we prepared the budget for 2015 and we did not cut back on anything," Williams said.

The department will move forward with overseeing the repaving of old streets and sidewalks this summer, he added.

Will Wingfield, media relations director for the Indiana Department of Transportation, said the state too uses federal match funding to contract private companies for projects. A long-term solution for the trust fund is necessary, he added.

"...[T]here is need for a multi-year authorization that provides the private sector with confidence to invest in equipment and employees of the longer term to match our business planning cycles," he said in an email.

He and INDOT are confident legislators will find a solution.

"Congress has never failed to keep the money flowing to the states for the nation's infrastructure needs," Wingfield wrote. "INDOT is planning its projects in anticipation that Congress will address this issue as they have done in the past."

U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly, D-Indiana, shared a similar sentiment.

"...I am committed to working with my colleagues, Democratic and Republican, to work on a serious, long-term funding plan to address the aging infrastructure across Indiana and the country," he said in an email.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.