Illinois’ motor fuel tax is working as intended: Fixing roads and keeping up with costs

Every July 1 since 2019, Illinois’ motor fuel tax ticks upward with the rate of inflation.

And every year, the same talking heads emerge attacking it as some evidence of broken government.

This is absurd. Illinois’ gas tax is working exactly as the bipartisan majorities who took historic steps to repair our crumbling infrastructure intended: reversing decades of neglect while keeping pace with the rising cost of infrastructure modernization on which our economy depends.

Before the Rebuild Illinois infrastructure program passed in 2019, Illinois’ infrastructure was falling apart. Years of gridlock in Springfield and a gas tax that hadn’t been increased in nearly three decades had left our state facing a multi-billion-dollar maintenance backlog. Research from the nonpartisan Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI) at the time painted a stark picture — roads deteriorating, potholes multiplying, and critical transportation systems slipping into “poor” condition while too little was being invested to make much of a difference. The transportation network was costing drivers hundreds of dollars in preventable maintenance and dozens of hours in traffic congestion every year.

Rebuild Illinois changed that. A bipartisan majority of state lawmakers enacted a $45 billion, multiyear investment in our roads, bridges, and transit systems; raised the motor fuel tax from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon; and pegged annual adjustments to inflation to prevent us from falling behind again. On July 1, the motor fuel tax will increase by 1.3 cents — from 47 cents to 48.3 cents per gallon.

Indexing the tax to inflation has enabled Illinois to keep pace with rising real-world costs of roadwork.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Construction Cost Index — a federally recognized benchmark for highway inflation — has increased by 63% since 2019 and more than tripled since 2003. That means any state that didn’t boost infrastructure funding has lost ground. Thanks to annual increases built into our motor fuel tax, Illinois has kept its footing while other states have stumbled.

But here’s the part that matters most: It’s working.

We’ve seen substantial drops in state roads rated in “poor” condition, which have plummeted by 12%, while the number in good or excellent condition increased by 9%. Our average “International Roughness Index,” which measures how smooth or rough roads are, also has improved by 4%. So far, more than 7,000 road miles have been repaired and more than 1,000 safety projects have been completed. As a result, vehicle crashes and injuries are down relative to the pre-Rebuild Illinois era.

Equally important, thousands of skilled tradespeople have been to work, contributing to the 29% growth of construction apprentices in Illinois since 2018 — apprentices who were paid on average a wage of $48 per hour last year upon completing classroom instruction and on-the-job training for in-demand careers.

This progress proves that sustained, smart investments work — and it underscores why the annual inflationary adjustment is so critical. Roads and bridges don’t fix themselves. When roads and bridges once considered in “good” or “fair” condition fall into disrepair, costs compound — requiring more time, materials, and taxpayer dollars to fix later.

That is why the small sacrifice we make every July 1 matters. The motor fuel tax remains Illinois’ most important tool for funding transportation, accounting for more than half the state’s transportation funding revenue and supporting highway, bridge, mass transit, and pedestrian projects across the state. The annual inflationary adjustment maintains the purchasing power we need to keep projects on track, ensures our infrastructure is structurally sound, and prevents us from repeating the mistakes of the past.

We should keep sight of the bigger picture. The annual increase is not just a gimmick — it is a guardrail. After decades of neglect, Illinois’ tough but responsible choice to invest in its future is paying off. And now, six years in, we’re seeing concrete results.

• Frank Manzo IV is an economist at the nonpartisan Illinois Economic Policy Institute.