or whom does the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority toll - those who drive, or all citizens of the Commonwealth?
That's the query posed by Question 6, which offers motorists a dollar-for-dollar state tax rebate for all money spent on tolls and auto excise tax payments.
The referendum, authored by the Free the Pike Coalition, would create one of the largest tax cuts in Massachusetts history - about $3.75 billion over its first five years, and $623 million in its first year alone, according to one nonpartisan group.
Although that money would go to vehicle-driving taxpayers and corporations, backers of the initiative say such a tax cut would still affect most of the population, since the vast majority of households have cars, even those people who commute via mass transit. More important, the backers argue, it would rectify a situation they see as patently unfair: For every dollar now spent on tolls, only a nickel goes to maintaining the turnpike, they say, which means drivers on the Mass. Pike are subsidizing the rest of the state.
An array of opponents have united to fight Question 6. Thirty interest groups came together last week to hold a news conference denouncing the question, and could barely fit on the sidewalk in front of the State House.
Some argue that the measure would create even worse traffic congestion in the state, as commuters who use mass transit would flock to their cars to win the tax rebate. Others say the measure would lead to much higher levels of pollution from automobile emissions. take money away from schools, bridges, and highway projects in dire need of repairs.
But if the criticisms are many, they are not widely heard. Many opponents of Question 6 have devoted their financial resources to an even larger tax cut on this year's ballot: Question 4, which offers an income tax cut backed by Governor Paul Cellucci that would subtract $1.2 billion from state coffers.
Of the three groups that have registered with the state to oppose Question 6, none is solely devoted to the measure. Also, none has plans to purchase paid advertisements on television, radio, or in newspapers to decry the initiative.
As a result, polls suggest, Question 6 remains a strong contender for passage. In the latest survey, conducted by Mass Insight, 44 percent of likely voters approved of the tax cut, while 40 percent did not.
Backers of the tax cut hope to solidify those numbers with a barrage of radio advertisements in Boston, Worcester, and Springfield this week, which would reach far more people than the seven billboard trucks currently trumpeting the message.
RAPHAEL LEWIS
