Will History Repeat itself Tuesday?

Missouri voters have a long track record on proposed tax hikes best summarized by one word: No. Yet organizers of the “Yes on D” campaign to raise Missouri’s gas tax by 10 cents a gallon believe this may be the year when voters finally consent. With only days to go before Tuesday’s election, there is no organized campaign urging people to vote “no” on Proposition D and not a penny dedicated to counteracting the nearly $5 million raised by supporters. Since voters approved a constitutional amendment in 1996 requiring all tax increases over a certain amount to go to a statewide vote, not a single general tax increase has passed. This year’s proposal would raise the state’s 17-cent-a-gallon fuel tax in annual 2.5 cent increments, starting next July, until it reaches 27 cents a gallon in July 2022.