Gas price
Fuel prices are displayed on a pump at a Mobil gas station in the Brooklyn borough of New York Feb. 3, 2016. Regular unleaded petrol is priced at $3.29 per gallon ($0.87 per litre). A dramatic drop in oil prices, driven down by a glut in supply, is translating into a mixed bag for motorists. All countries have access to the same oil prices on international markets, but retail prices vary wildly, largely because of taxes and subsidies. Reuters

In order to generate $52 billion in revenue for transportation projects in California, Gov. Jerry Brown and other legislative leaders Wednesday proposed a big gasoline tax increase, higher car registration fees and a charge on emission-free vehicles. The 10-year plan would raise gasoline excise taxes by 43 percent — 12 cents per gallon — a move that has been reportedly taken for the first time in more than two decades.

Every California driver spends about $700 per year for repairing damaged vehicles, which are caused by rough roads, according to Brown's office. It said that if investments in fixing California's roads are not made now, the drivers will have to pay eight times more to replace their vehicles later, according to local radio channel KPCC 89.3.

Read: Indiana GOP Plan Includes New Taxes To Maintain Roads And Bridges

Apart from gas excise taxes, sales tax on diesel would also increase from 5.75 percent to 9.75 percent, and the diesel excise tax would go up from 16 cents to 36 cents per gallon, according to Los Angeles Times.

Under the proposal, annual vehicle registration fees would increase, ranging from $25 on the low end for vehicles valued under $5,000 and $175 on the high end for vehicles valued at $60,000 or above. People who drive zero-emission vehicles would also have to pay a $100 annual vehicle fee, for the first time, the Associated Press reported.

"Yes, it costs money. And if the roof in your house is leaking, you better fix it, because it gets worse all the time," Brown said at a Capitol news conference. "This is mostly about fixing what we already have. If for some reason people try to fight this, and God help us if they were successful, they won't defeat this, they'll just delay it and make the expenses go up."

Some people on social media were quick enough to criticize the move.

However, others were happy with the proposal as they believed it would fix the state roads and highways.

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