LANSING, MI (AP)-- Governor Rick Snyder says Michigan voters have resoundingly defeated tax increases to pump $1.2 billion more a year into deteriorating roads.
Before all returns had been counted, Snyder said in a statement Tuesday night that the measure was dead.
The lawmaker-proposed constitutional amendment would have ended Michigan's status as one of the most frugal states in spending on infrastructure such as highways.
Voters rejected a sales tax increase along with higher fuel taxes and vehicle registration fees despite support from the Republican governor, legislative leaders and a broad coalition of business and labor groups.
Backers said the roads are unsafe and cost drivers hundreds of dollars a year in repairs. But opponents criticized higher taxes outright or said the measure unnecessarily would have included other spending as part of a political deal.