Two members of Limestone County’s legislative delegation who voted to raise the gas tax by 10 cents per gallon believe it was the only option to help repair roads and bridges statewide.

Gov. Kay Ivey signed the Rebuild Alabama Act into law Tuesday afternoon. The bill was introduced to a House committee, debated and ultimately approved by both chambers within a five-day window.

State Rep. Danny Crawford, R-Athens, and state Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, said they weren’t concerned about popularity or politics by casting “yes” votes for the measure.

“I wasn’t worried about my political future,” Melson said. “I was worried about the next generation.”

He explained Limestone stands to gain and extra $1 million from the increase, while Lauderdale will get $1.3 million and Madison County $3 million. He said the final bill also included a provision that the state’s inland ports would be updated.

The bill also sets aside $11.7 million of the revenue to be used for a bond issue for improvements at the Port of Mobile.

Melson said he understands there are some who don’t understand how the Mobile port benefits the Tennessee Valley, but he explained the port would be used to ship Mazdas and Toyotas overseas from Alabama after they are made in Limestone County.

“You have to do what is right for the future of the state,” he said. “I hope the general public waits to see the results. If there’s no new projects or asphalt being laid down in Limestone County within the next three years, I’ll be sorry I voted for it.”

Crawford believes the tax hike represented the best chance for cities like Athens and counties like Limestone to address critical infrastructure needs. He’s not for taxes and is concerned about how those on fixed incomes will be affected. He plans to press Ivey on other measures that could help Alabamians, including a reduction on the grocery tax.

He explained lawmakers “looked at everything in the world” before Ivey pushed her proposal. He said 5,500 state employees were laid off and cuts had been made at nearly all state departments.

“There just wasn’t any money there to fix the roads or prepare us for the tremendous growth we have coming into Limestone County,” he said. “A lot of our citizens are in favor of this.”

When asked how the average Alabamian could relate to having to pay more at the pump, Crawford explained it’s simply a user fee, but also a quality-of-life issue.

“If you’ve got a house and your roof is leaking, you can ignore it and say, ‘I’m not going to spend money on it,’ but it’s going to continue to cause problems. That’s where we are,” he said. “This is our taxpayers putting money back into their investment.”

About the bill

Supporters said Alabama’s current 18-cent gas tax has been unchanged since 1992, leaving the state without adequate funds to replace aging bridges and improve congested and dangerous roads.

The 10-cent-a-gallon gas tax increase would be phased in over three years. The state tax would then be adjusted up or down with the National Highway Construction Cost Index and could increase up to a penny every two years. The proposal would also place an annual $200 fee on electric vehicles and a $100 annual fee on hybrid vehicles.

Senators tabled a proposed change by Sen. Dan Roberts, R-Birmingham, that would have created a $40 million pool for tax rebates for low-income motorists. Roberts also proposed to end any automatic increases through indexing in 2039.

Roberts said he wanted to revisit the idea in the regular session.

Despite the broad legislative support, the proposed gas tax increase has divided Republicans. The Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee approved a resolution opposing the measure. However, the Republican governor had the backing of GOP legislative leaders.

Ivey made the infrastructure proposal one of her first initiatives after winning a full term in office in November. The governor called lawmakers into a special session that began Wednesday to consider the gas-tax increase. The proposal went before a Legislature with a large number of freshmen.

Senate Pro Tem Del Marsh said he had cautioned legislative candidates who he met with, telling them infrastructure would be a “something we had to deal with.”

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.