Build Indiana Council & transportation leaders thank Gov. Braun for gas tax pause, call for sustainable road funding

Submitted

On Tuesday, Aug. 11, the Build Indiana Council (BIC) and its member organizations, including Indiana Constructors, Inc. (ICI) and ACEC Indiana, acknowledged Gov. Mike Braun’s efforts to help protect Hoosiers’ wallets with his continuation of the gas tax suspension.

These leaders also sounded the warning bells for the future of Indiana’s transportation network, which is at a critical inflection point, calling for action to protect this infrastructure and prevent ripple effects in communities across Indiana.

Last week, Gov. Mike Braun announced the continuation of Indiana’s gas tax suspension through Sept. 5. Since the emergency order was enacted in April 2026, it has provided relief to Hoosiers by saving money at the pump, especially during peak summer travel season and the Fourth of July holiday. Transportation leaders welcomed the extension of the gas tax holiday while emphasizing the importance of reinstating this funding mechanism to protect the vitality of Indiana’s roads and bridges.

“We’d like to thank Governor Braun for his leadership in helping Hoosiers save money and his commitment to our state’s roads and bridges,” BIC Executive Director Brian Gould said. “We also appreciate his pledge to backfill funds lost due to the gas tax suspension, which will support communities across the state. At the same time, Indiana must confront the reality that we are approaching a fiscal cliff in transportation infrastructure that threatens years of progress. We must continue to invest if we want to keep moving forward.”

The gas tax holiday has resulted in a temporary loss of about $533 million on road and bridge funding through July, and that number will grow as the suspension continues. The governor’s initiative to backfill these dollars is already in progress. This past June, the Braun administration also announced the latest round of funding in the Community Crossings grant program, totaling $84 million that will be invested into 147 Indiana cities and counties. Steps like these are critical to the long-term health of Indiana’s roads and bridges.

Transportation and logistics are major drivers of Indiana’s 21st-century economy and a report from ConsumerAffairs ranked Indiana as having the best roads in the country. The state has earned its reputation as a leading logistics hub thanks to a 2017 funding package passed by the Indiana General Assembly to maintain highways, roads, and bridges.

The 2017 funding package is a proven blueprint for transportation excellence. Results from the package show significant improvements in road and bridge conditions and the overall driver experience:

• According to the most recent report from Midwest Economic Policy Institute (MEPI), between 2017 and 2021, the percentage of Indiana pavement lane miles considered to be in “good” condition grew from 14 percent to 27 percent, nearly doubling.
• TRIP, a national transportation research organization, notes that Indiana drivers pay significantly less than the national average in costs associated with deteriorated roads, including increased fuel consumption, tire wear, vehicle depreciation and additional repairs; those costs total just $230 per year for the average Indiana driver, compared with $725 nationwide.
• Indiana ranks in the top third of states for fewest traffic deaths with an average of just 1.05 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, according to the Journal of Consumer Research.

But nearly 10 years after passage of that funding package, Indiana’s infrastructure funding system is no longer keeping pace. A 2024 report from the Indiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) showed that preserving the progress made on local roads alone would require more than $1.2 billion in new funding annually, while improving conditions would require at least $2 billion per year. INDOT estimated just two years ago that Indiana would need another $1.2 billion annually for state roads and bridges.

Current funding projections show that Indiana’s transportation construction workforce will soon be limited to performing basic maintenance rather than expanding and improving the network that has helped drive the state’s economic growth and prosperity. Without investment, Indiana risks falling behind after a decade of historic economic progress. Diversifying revenue sources and reducing the state’s dependence on fuel-consumption-based revenue is essential to establishing a sustainable, long-term funding plan.

The time to act is now.

Learn more at buildindianacouncil.org/legislative-priorities-2.