Trump says open to gasoline tax hike to fund infrastructure

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he would consider increasing the federal tax on gasoline to fund infrastructure development, Bloomberg News reported.

“It’s something that I would certainly consider,” Trump told the news agency in an interview on Monday. “The truckers have said that they want me to do something as long as that money is earmarked to highways.”

The Trump administration released an outline of a tax plan last week that would slash tax rates for businesses and reduce the number of tax brackets for individuals.

The plan, however, was silent on gasoline taxes, a potentially delicate issue given the widespread impact any increase would have on U.S. households.

Trump told Bloomberg his tax proposal was just an opening gambit in a negotiation with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

“Everything is a starting point,” he said, according to Bloomberg, adding that he was willing to give up on aspects of his plan. He declined to specify where he would yield.

Source: Reuters