HOW CAN the High Andes help students get into classes a hemisphere away?Put gas into a car and out comes the answer.
Both the Bolivian government of 1986 and the Virginian government of today have found themselves desperate for revenue. A look at Bolivian history suggests that Virginia should slightly raise its state excise tax of gasoline. Increasing the state gasoline and diesel tax by a mere 2 cents a gallon, then earmarking the revenue specifically for education spending, could be the surest way to arrest public education's deterioration.
Faced with tremendous hyperinflation that squeezed Bolivia's collection of tax revenues to an abysmal 2 percent of its GDP, its government needed a quick infusion of revenue. The Virginian tax base is also relatively abysmal, with a tremendous gap between the wealth the state produces and the public goods the state offers to its citizens.
Despite being ranked as the 12th wealthiest state in terms of per-capita income, Virginia dwells at 48th in terms of education spending, according to Politics Prof. George Klosko. Therein lies the primary reason the University lacks professors, classes are bursting at the seams and the University's quality of instruction is "sinking into mediocrity," in the words of Politics Department Chair Robert Fatton.
Simply put, there are not enough professors to teach the University's burgeoning student body. In years past, the Economics department used to hire adjunct professors to teach classes, while this year a dearth of state funding has eliminated that option. In response, the remaining Economics professors have ordered students to leave overstuffed economics classrooms immediately.
Rather than fund professor hiring, subsequently large increases in tuition have not stayed on Grounds but rather have gone to rescue the state government in Richmond. Out-of-state fourth years now pay $5,569 more for tuition than they did as first years, yet there are less and worse-paid professors today than then. Which is preferable, a burdensome education tax on already overstretched students or a tiny gas tax?
A minute increase of the gas tax will reap huge benefits for public schools while being economically sound. The tax is both fair -- it taxes all at the same rate -- and efficient since raising it does not mean less productivity. Some see the tax instead as a "highway user fee."
Who is a seemingly liberal, outspoken proponent of higher taxes?The Virginia Chamber of Commerce, a business leadership group, notes, "It has been 17 years since motor fuels taxes have changed in Virginia"(www.vachamber.com). According to the Chamber, such a mild increase would "be a major step forward" in promoting its goal of "economic growth in a global economy."
Drivers in the United States already pay nearly the lowest gas prices in the world, and within the United States, Virginian drivers find bargains at the gas pump. A road trip from my native Wisconsin this August proved that gas is at least 10 cents cheaper in Virginia than all other states passed through. No wonder; Wisconsin drivers pay 28.1 cents per gallon in taxes while Virginian drivers pay 17.5 cents. In fact, as of January 2003, Virginia's average gas prices ranked 43rd in an intra-state comparison of the average price per gallon done by the Nebraska state legislature.
Are decomposing schools worth the minimal taxes paid at the pump? Does Virginia's economy, not to mention society, grow and prosper because of its low gas tax rates? A 2-cent increase would still rank Virginia's gas tax as the 40th costly among all states, while its neighbors of the District of Columbia, West Virginia and Maryland rank 6th, 17th and 18th, respectively. Virginia even would have to raise its gas taxes 6 cents to equal those of Maryland. Clearly, this proposal does not remove any comparative advantage the Commonwealth might have. Marginal costs at the gas pump would mean more than marginal benefits in the classroom.
Almost two decades ago, Bolivia was able to find its way out of a financial abyss through this common sense method. A decade ago in Virginia, over 20 percent of its flagship university's funding came from the state. Today, a scant 8 percent of this year's budget comes from public sources. A further deterioration of public education's quality, obvious at all money-strapped schools this year, could be restrained by earmarking a gas tax for education. The state has no task more important than to provide a robust education to its residents. Let us end these gas bargains so that public education does not become put on clearance. Bolivia could prove to be a great teacher.
(Brandon Possin's column appears Tuesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at bpossin@cavalierdaily.com.)
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