An Act establishing a local option gas tax

This bill (HD 1820) allows Massachusetts cities and towns to impose a local 3-cent-per-gallon excise tax on fuel and special fuels sold to retail dealers within their borders. Retail fuel suppliers must collect this tax monthly and remit it to the state, which then distributes the funds quarterly back to the adopting municipality. The revenue must be spent equally on three specific transportation purposes: road/bridge maintenance (1/3), public transit (1/3), and alternative transportation projects like bike lanes or carpool programs (1/3). It does not change existing state fuel taxes and applies only to communities that choose to adopt the new local option.