Drivers across New Mexico are feeling the strain of higher gas prices, with some saying the increased cost of fuel is affecting household budgets and the broader economy.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Drivers across New Mexico are feeling the strain of higher gas prices, with some saying the increased cost of fuel is affecting household budgets and the broader economy.
For truck driver Paul Howard, higher fuel prices have consequences beyond the gas pump.
“The more gas goes up, the more it costs people at the grocery store, the more cost people at the grocery store, the higher the rent goes for everybody. I mean, it’s affecting everybody all over,” said Howard.
Laurie Majka, who is driving home to Arizona after spending the summer at her cabin in Michigan, said fuel prices in New Mexico stood out during her trip. She has traveled through Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas on her way home.
“It’s just kind of the cost of doing business,” Majka said.
Still, she noted a difference in what she has paid at the pump.
“This is by far the most expensive gas,” she said.
While gas prices in New Mexico may be higher than in some neighboring states, the state’s fuel tax remains among the lowest in the nation.
State Sen. Bobby Gonzales, D-District 6, is proposing an increase of 3 cents per gallon on gasoline and 4 cents per gallon on diesel fuel.
“What I have seen is that it’s never the right time, but everything has gone up,” Gonzales said. “We haven’t raised our tax in over 30 years.”
Gonzales said the proposal would help bolster the state road fund and pay for infrastructure needs across New Mexico.
“Without striping, without filling potholes, without addressing repairing guardrails, and the list goes on. You know, we’re behind, and also it’s unsafe,” said Gonzales.
Not everyone agrees that a tax increase is necessary.
State Sen. Bill Sharer, R-District 1, says the state already has revenue available from the oil and gas industry and should not ask drivers to pay more at the pump.
“There is money that’s already coming in. It’s being paid for by the oil and gas industry, or paid by the oil and gas industry today. That’s just their the taxes that they’re paying. And so, hey, we got the money. We don’t need to raise taxes,” said Sharer.
The proposal sets up a debate between those who say additional revenue is needed to maintain roads and improve safety and those who argue existing funding sources are sufficient without raising fuel taxes.
