White House officials praised Oregon this week for its experimental road usage tax, indicating in the process that President Trump may explore taking the tax nationwide to help pay for his proposed road improvement projects.

The tax the White House applauded charges drivers based on miles driven, not gallons of gas burned. Volunteers for the pilot program pay 1.7 cents per mile they drive, then get a rebate on gas taxes paid at the pump. Fewer than 700 Oregonians were signed up for the program as of last year.

Trump administration officials hailed the tax as innovative in the annual Economic Report of the President, published Wednesday. The report, written by the president's Council of Economic Advisers, said Oregon's experiment offers "tangible evidence" that a pay-per-mile system could be a "promising alternative" to traditional gas taxes.

Gas tax revenues have fallen in Oregon and nationwide as cars have become more fuel efficient. That strains budgets of government agencies responsible for building and maintaining public infrastructure, which have traditionally relied on gas tax revenues for funding.

Trump's White House – usually a critic of Oregon for its liberal policies – also commended the Democrat-dominated state for its creative thinking on raising money to build roads and bridges.

"Oregon has long been a pioneer when it comes to transportation funding," the report said. It noted that Oregon was the first state to pass a gas tax, of 1 cent per gallon in 1919.

Oregon lawmakers and transportation officials have also long applauded the pay-per-mile tax pilot. Last year, however, lawmakers chose not to expand it as part of their $5.3 billion transportation plan. Instead, they increased the state gas tax and created new taxes and fees on payroll, new cars and bicycles, and DMV transactions.

Trump is seeking hundreds of billions of dollars of new federal spending in the hopes of sparking $1.5 trillion in infrastructure spending over a decade.

-- Gordon R. Friedman

503-221-8209; @GordonRFriedman