I just graduated from Winthrop University last May, and was privileged to learn from excellent professors I had in the Graduate College of Business. However, I am disappointed the political science division of the College of Arts and Sciences at Winthrop formulated the recent gas tax question which, in my opinion, led a “yes” answer to the poll question – something we were cautioned against in order to get polls that reflect true public opinion and useful results. I question who might have pushed Winthrop to do the gas tax polling, since this was the second poll on the subject and what its geographic area was.

The Winthrop University poll question was:
“There is currently a proposal in the South Carolina Legislature to increase the state gas tax by up to 10 cents a gallon. This would increase the cost of gas in the state, but a gallon of gas in South Carolina would still be cheaper than a gallon of gas in North Carolina or Georgia. The money raised would be restricted to use for infrastructure, such as repairing roads and bridges.”

An earlier poll found that the respondents did NOT favor an increase in the gas tax, but this poll changed the result to a YES, because it said that the gas tax would be cheaper than North Carolina and Georgia. I wonder if drivers in the Midlands or areas not adjoining Georgia or North Carolina care if South Carolina’s gas “would still be cheaper.”

The question failed to mention that North Carolina has the eighth highest gas tax in the nation and Georgia has the 20th highest while South Carolina’s gas tax is almost the lowest in the nation at 47th, according to data from the Tax Foundation.
Read more at http://www.fitsnews.com/2015/03/09/sarah-nuckles-tricky-gas-tax-poll-question/#TpeLwvIXy4u3SFrB.99