Brevard commissioners consider gas tax hike to pay for road repairs

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Brevard County has 280 miles of roads that are badly in need of repairs and leaders are considering a tax to help pay for the cost.

The proposal would mean an added 6 cents per gallon at gas pumps. The county is only collecting half of what it could, but many residents said it's already enough.

It already costs Brevard County driver Cheryl Murphy about $50 to fill up her SUV and she doesn't like the idea of an extra 6 cents.

"Every time we turn around they're taxing us for one thing or another," Murphy said.

Brevard County currently collects one of the lowest amounts of gas tax in Florida. If the county maxed out its fuel tax collections, it could generate nearly $8 million in transportation funding.

The increased gas tax is just one option that's being proposed by an advisory board on transportation infrastructure.

"We need the road repaired, that's for sure," resident Kim Pemberton.

But Pemberton said many families are already struggling, which may be a consideration for commissioners, who only need a super majority to approve the gas tax hike.

The advisory board is also asking commissioners to consider reinstating impact fees and a public services tax on alternative forms of energy.

WFTV