COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Potholes are burning a hole in the pocket of Todd Borgerson, a 23-year-old who said he spent about $1,500 on car repairs over the last two months.

From two tire replacements to three realignments – and other mechanical issues that have left him with a wobbly 2014 Volkswagen GTI  – Borgerson said the “embarrassing” state of central Ohio’s roads are the worst he’s seen since moving to Columbus five years ago.

“I’ve never seen more destroyed cars while driving,” he said. “Missing bumpers, so many spare tires – cars in Columbus have taken a beating this winter.”

The C-minus rating Ohio’s infrastructure received from the Ohio Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2021 is why Borgerson and some transportation-related groups are sounding the alarm on a state Senate bill that would temporarily lower gas taxes, which bill sponsor Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City) said is desperately needed to alleviate the burden of rising fuel costs on Ohio families.

Senate Bill 277, introduced in December, would, if enacted, place a five-year repeal on the state’s 2019 fuel tax increase, which implemented a 10.5-cent tax increase on gasoline and a 35-cent tax increase on diesel, setting both taxes at 38.5 and 47 cents per gallon, respectively.

With the average gas price in Ohio surging past $4, according to AAA, Huffman said low-income Ohioans are bearing the brunt of filling up their tanks.

“Ten to 15 cents less per gallon for a working-class person,” Huffman said. “So we can provide a little bit of relief.”

But Matt Bruning, press secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation, said repealing the gas tax increase could cause ODOT – which received 47 percent of its total revenue in 2021 from the gas tax – to lose $4 billion over five years.

Although Ohio Trucking Association president and CEO Tom Balzer said truck drivers – many of whom aren’t paid until 30 days after a load is hauled – have been reaching into the reserves to afford fuel costs, he added SB 277 doesn’t guarantee that road and infrastructure repairs will be maintained.

OTA-member truck drivers rely on roads and highways to transact business, Balzar said, and the revenue derived from the 2019 gas tax is the only source of money from the state for road and bridge repairs.

Huffman, however, argued that about $11.5 billion in investments to Ohio’s roads, bridges, and highways derived from the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure bill in August is more than enough to cover the loss from repealing the gas tax increase.

“The federal bill was passed a year after Ohio’s transportation budget, making our gas tax increase unnecessary,” Huffman said. “There is no better time to repeal this tax than now. Inflation is killing the hard-working moms and dads in Ohio, and this is a way to give them much-needed relief right now.”

While Huffman said the state is receiving $10 billion more than the $1.5 billion it needs to address road and infrastructure repairs, Bruning said Ohio and ODOT aren’t receiving a tremendous amount from the federal bill — as the state was already set to receive about $8.5 billion of the $10 billion “regardless of the passage of the new federal infrastructure bill.”

“To be clear, the state is not receiving an additional $10 billion over what we were already in line to receive,” Bruning said. “This has, unfortunately, been a point of confusion. The total additional amount the state will receive over five years is closer to about $1.5 billion.”

Ohio’s transportation budget allocated about $4.3 billion to ODOT and local governments, according to the Legislative Service Commission.

Although Ohio can apply for additional grant and program funding through the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in November, Bruning said in order to obtain those dollars, states must provide a certain percentage, usually about 20 percent, of the project’s total cost.

“If we don’t have those funds available, we risk losing the federal funds on projects and those dollars will be redistributed to other states,” Bruning said.

Lisa Neuman, who’s been a delivery driver for DoorDash and Uber for four years, said her expenses on gas have doubled in the past few weeks. Normally, she’d spend about $20 or $30 on gas, but with the surge in prices, she’s paying about $60 to deliver 35 orders in one weekend to Grove City-area residents.

“It definitely affects how we run as far as we’re a lot pickier now as to what orders we’ll take,” Neuman said.

She described SB 277 as a “smoke and mirrors” situation — although it could help her pocket more profits, she said she’s concerned about what the bill could mean for infrastructure and road funding.

“If I hit a pothole going 45 miles per hour, you know, that’s enough to throw my car out of line, to flatten my tire,” Neuman said. “I need my roads maintained as much as I need my gas affordable. Either thing will take out my vehicle and impact my money. I would hate to sacrifice one for another.”

Aside from infrastructure repairs that could be swept under the rug, Balzar said OTA isn’t convinced that repealing the gas tax increase will lead to noticeable differences in consumers’ receipts at the pump.

According to a June 2020 analysis by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, a one-third increase or decrease in state gas tax rates had no “significant impact” on gas prices, as taxes “are just one component of a complex pricing scheme that includes consideration of the price of crude oil and other state specific factors.”

“Fuel is extremely volatile, and the cost of it fluctuates,” Balzar said. “There’s nothing that leads us to believe that the repeal of fuel tax will lead to lower gas prices.”

Huffman, however, said truck drivers and those dispensing large quantities of fuel will especially benefit from his bill.

“As an independent trucker, you have two 125-gallon tanks, and on a fill-up, you’re paying almost $100 (more) now. Twenty cents on 250 gallons – that’s $50 less than that trucker is spending a week filling up his gas tank,” Huffman said. “I think it would make a difference to that trucker.”

While lawmakers debate the best way to alleviate prices at the pump — and address road and infrastructure repairs — Borgerson said he’ll be swerving around the streets of downtown Columbus to avoid striking potholes and dishing out another $1,500 in repairs to the car he purchased “in great shape” just six months ago.

“I would rather there be a bill increasing taxes so they get the roads fixed,” he said. “It’s embarrassing for the city to look like this. The roads have never looked worse.”