t a time when Massachusetts has an accumulated backlog of more than $10 billion in capital projects, many of them involving transportation and capped by the Big Dig, the sponsors of Question 6 ask voters to shed more than $700 million in annual revenues. It is a costly gambit that would undercut long-term efforts at improving infrastructure that plays an important part in sustaining the state's prosperity. The Globe urges a No vote on 6.
The proposal would make tolls on the Massachusetts Turnpike, Tobin Bridge, the Sumner, Callahan, and Ted Williams tunnels, and annual excise taxes paid for motor vehicles into credits against income taxes - both individual and corporate. It would shift all of those burdens to the general revenue structure, primarily the income and sales taxes. Question 6 is opposed by a broad ideological spectrum, from the Conservation Law Foundation to the Pioneer Institute and the Massachusetts Taxpayers' Foundation in between.
The history of the measure is spotty. An attempt two years ago to place a simple repeal of road tolls on the ballot was overturned by the Supreme Judicial Court on the grounds that it violated obligations to bondholders. The conversion of tolls to tax credit is an attempt to get around that problem, since funds would continue to be available for those obligations. But the burden would shift to all taxpayers rather than falling primarily on users.
Collecting tolls is a bit cumbersome, but introduction of the Fast Lane automated transponder has improved that for thousands of drivers. The shift to tax credits is also cumbersome and possibly subject to disputes with the Department of Revenue.
Tolls are a valid way of raising revenue for transportation purposes, and the Turnpike Authority will play a significant role in helping pay for the Big Dig. Since all highway systems are interconnected and essential to each other's smooth operation, it is appropriate to use toll revenues for non-Pike projects across the state as well as for the Big Dig.
Transportation costs, both construction and maintenance, have always been supported primarily through taxes, fees, tolls, and other related sources that fall primarily on those who use the facilities rather than on general revenues. This structure may not be perfect in every respect but it is fair and in no need of major revision.
Question 6 would be a gash in the conduit of funds for necessary transportation projects. It would put heavy competitive pressure on other capital projects - schools, courthouses, fire and police stations - already often delayed. Massachusetts would be ill-served by the disruption Question 6 is sure to create.
