Gas Tax Survives As Voters Vote Down Prop. 6

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LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — The much-reviled gas tax survived Tuesday's election, with voters choosing to keep the 12-cent tax on every gallon of gasoline to fund statewide transportation improvements.

Proposition 6, which was rejected by 55.3 percent of voters, would have repealed the gas tax hike that took effect in November 2017. It added 12 cents to every gallon of gasoline and 20 cents per gallon of diesel fuel to raise billions a year for road and bridge repairs.

The push to repeal the gas tax was spearheaded by former San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio, and funded in part by Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox, who co-authored a ballot argument that dismissed contentions that the tax hike was critical to fixing the state's roads and improving transportation in the state.

Opponents, among them Gov. Jerry Brown, had blasted the proposition and dismissed it as a "Republican stunt to get a few of their losers returned to Congress."