A South Carolina Senate panel has approved a bill that would require motorists to pay an extra 7 cents per gallon of fuel to generate revenue to maintain secondary roads. However, some legislators predict the bill will ultimately die in a House committee.

The House version of the bill had called for earmarking money for highway repairs without raising taxes. But Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, told The Associated Press more was needed to fix roads.

The bill that cleared Leatherman’s committee on a 11-7 vote May 11 would have drivers pay an extra 2 cents a gallon on fuel by Dec. 1, 2006, or sooner if average prices dip below $2 a gallon. The tax would add a penny per gallon to the state’s 16-cent-a-gallon fuel tax each of the next five years and ultimately generate about $200 million annually for roadwork, The AP reported.

Senators also amended the bill to divert road-related fees to the state infrastructure bank, which helps pay for new roads.

But their plans are going over like a led balloon to other lawmakers. The sponsor of the amended House bill said he would rather his bill die than raise the gasoline tax.

“I won’t support the bill with the gas tax on it,” Rep. Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, told the news agency.

The bill – H3296 – will first need to gain approval by the full Senate before the House can act on the changes. If the bill makes its way back to the House with the fuel tax still intact, Harrell predicted leaders there would stick it in a committee and forget about it.

The effort’s demise would mean attempts to come up with a dedicated stream of revenue for road repairs also would die for this year.

Harrell’s original bill called for raising about $100 million for secondary highways by sending road-related taxes – including driver’s license and vehicle registration fees – to a repair fund.

A shortage of funds forced the South Carolina Department of Transportation three years ago to stop resurfacing secondary highways. The state has a $560 million annual shortfall for maintenance, The State newspaper reported.