NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Latest on Gov. Bill Haslam's transportation funding proposal (all times local):
4:30 p.m.
State Rep. John Mark Windle says he called for the delay on voting on Gov. Bill Haslam's transportation funding proposal to ensure that working Tennesseans' needs are considered.
The Livingston Democrat tells The Associated Press that he has not yet made up his mind on the Republican governor's legislation that would include the state's first gas tax hike since 1989. But Windle said more should be done to offset that tax increase for lower-income people than is currently envisioned under Haslam's plan.
Windle tried to introduce a provision to exclude the sales tax on baby formula, but was ruled out of order by the committee chair.
In Windle's words: "I don't think I should have to apologize because the fat cats don't get all the goodies. Should the rich people out in Belle Meade get everything?"
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12:45 p.m.
A key vote on efforts to boost transportation funding in Tennessee has been put off by at least a week.
House Transportation Subcommittee Chairwoman Terri Lynn Weaver on Wednesday decided to first take up a rival proposal to Gov. Bill Haslam's plan introduced by Republican Rep. David Hawk.
Weaver then refused Democratic Rep. John Mark Windle's effort to add a sales tax exemption for baby formula because he hadn't offered the amendment earlier in the day.
Windle responded by calling for the committee to adjourn for the week, which prevailed on a voice vote.
Haslam's proposal would raise money in large part through a tax hike on gasoline and diesel, but also cuts taxes on groceries, large manufacturers and personal investments.
Hawk's bill would instead redirect a small percentage of sales tax money to road projects.
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10:45 a.m.
A Middle Tennessee State University poll finds that 38 percent of registered voters favor Republican Gov. Bill Haslam's proposal to pay for a new road program primarily through a fuel tax hike and 28 percent oppose it.
The remaining third of the 600 people surveyed said they weren't sure about the governor's plan. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
The poll found that support for the plan improved to 51 percent among those who said they had heard some or a lot about the proposal, while 31 percent said they were opposed.
Among those who knew little or nothing about the initiative, support and opposition was tied at 24 percent.
A vote on the governor's proposal is expected Wednesday in a House subcommittee.
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9 a.m.
Republican Gov. Bill Haslam says the first vote on his transportation funding initiative in a House subcommittee likely won't foreshadow the final version of the legislation.
The House Transportation Subcommittee is expected to decide Wednesday about whether to advance the governor's plan that includes the state's first gas tax hike since 1989, or to go with a rival Republican proposal that would instead redirect a small percentage of the state's sales tax collections to road projects.
The panel could also defeat the bill altogether, but Haslam appears confident that some version of the measure would be approved.
The governor's proposal is to raise transportation revenue from drivers while also making cuts to the sales tax on groceries, corporate taxes on manufacturers and the tax on income from stocks and bonds.