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The winding journey for a proposed doubling of Jacksonville's local gas tax is nearing the end of its trip through City Council and headed toward likely passage with support from at least 11 council members, based on their public comments through Tuesday. Council will meet Wednesday for a special meeting devoted to the gas tax legislation and a final vote by the 19-member body. Ten council members have taken public stances in solid support for the tax increase while five council members have made stands against it. That meant at least one of the four other council members would need to vo...

Jacksonville City Council voted 14-5 to double local gas tax. Council rejected attempt to strip $247 million Skyway conversion from list of projects

The Jacksonville City Council voted 14 to 5 Wednesday to pass the local option gas tax increase, slated to fund more than $900 million in infrastructure projects.

For the first time in the 53-year history of Jacksonville and Duval County’s consolidated government, City Council will be led by two African American lawmakers.  The 19-member Council chose at-large members Sam Newby and Terrance Freeman on May 25 as president and vice president for its 2021-22 year, starting July 1. Council members unanimously chose Vice President Newby as president. He ran unopposed. Newby, 57, is a second-term Republican elected to the Council’s Group 5 At-Large seat in 2015 and reelected in March 2020.  He worked for PepsiCo for 30 years and is a past vice chairman...

Council member Danny Becton, who opposes increasing the gas tax, said the Jacksonville's growth keeps generating tax money that city leaders can use for infrastructure needs. "It certainly validates the fact that our city continues to receive additional revenue increases every year as our city continues to grow," Becton said. "At some point, when is enough enough in terms of asking the taxpayers to pony up revenue?" Mayor Lenny Curry, who proposed the gas tax increase, has said that while the city has greatly boosted spending on its capital improvement programs since he took office in 2...