Potential revenue sources for Virginia's transportation safety programs : review of Virginia's revenue sources and a survey of other states : final report.

Froning, Patricia · 1992 · ROSA P / Virginia Transportation Research Council (VTRC)

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (full text — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This 1992 report by the Virginia Transportation Research Council addresses the financial instability of Virginia’s highway safety programs. Motivated by concerns that inflation and declining federal support were eroding Virginia’s national leadership in traffic safety, the study aimed to identify viable new revenue sources. The research was driven by the high economic cost of crashes—estimated at over $2.5 billion for fatalities and $9.6 billion for nonfatal incidents in 1990—and the fact that Virginia’s safety programs relied heavily on federal grants that were insufficient to meet demand. The study employed a five-step methodology to analyze potential funding mechanisms. First, the author conducted a literature review of existing studies on transportation safety financing. Second, the Code of Virginia was examined to identify successful funding mechanisms already in use within the Commonwealth. Third, a telephone survey of all states was conducted to identify innovative funding methods used elsewhere. Fourth, sources of revenue inherently related to highway safety were identified based on the previous analyses. Finally, each potential source was analyzed to project potential revenue generation and allocation strategies. The findings highlighted several existing and potential revenue streams. Currently, Virginia utilizes specific fees for safety-related programs, such as a $3 motorcycle registration surcharge raising approximately $190,000 annually, a $2 per vehicle fee for emergency medical services raising over $8 million, and driver education funds exceeding $1.5 million annually. The national survey revealed that many states earmark portions of alcohol taxes, license revenues, and drunk driving assessments for safety programs; for example, New Jersey raises $11 million annually from a wholesale alcohol tax. The report identified three primary potential sources for Virginia: alcohol-related taxes, traffic fines, and insurance premium surcharges. Alcohol taxes were deemed highly relevant given that 50% of traffic fatalities were alcohol-related in 1990. The analysis projected that increasing alcohol tax rates by 1% to 5% could generate between $140,000 and $720,000 from wine taxes, and up to $1.95 million from beer taxes. Traffic fines were noted as a potential source, though legal barriers currently direct most fines to the Literary Fund. Additionally, a surcharge on automobile insurance premiums was proposed, leveraging the existing $2.35 billion in annual auto premiums collected in Virginia. The report concludes that additional revenue is necessary to sustain and enhance Virginia’s highway safety initiatives. It recommends implementing viable options such as increasing alcohol taxes or introducing surcharges on insurance premiums, with specific suggestions for how these funds should be distributed and administered. The study underscores the need for stable, dedicated funding to ensure the continued quality of safety programs and support future innovations.

Key finding

Alcohol taxes, traffic fines, and insurance premium surcharges were identified as viable potential revenue sources for Virginia's highway safety programs.

Methodology

survey

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via bulk_ingest_rosap on 2026-05-23 (6 acquisition events logged).

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-07; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• regulatory evaluation