Purchase a gallon of gas; pay a few extra bits to the government; and see that cash come back to you as a strong bridge or a smooth road. Simple, right? Wrong, and according to Ronald Utt, Ph.D., a research fellow with The Heritage Foundation, this flawed system continues to create "pervasive inequities" that exacerbate regional transportation problems.

How it works: Federal fuel taxes — 18.4 cents per gallon — are paid by drivers into the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), and the funds flow back to states according to "mathematical formulas that attempt to match payments from the federal highway programs to the scope and usage of each state's surface transportation system," according to a recent article by Utt.

Looking at 2007 disbursement numbers of highways and transit funds (see graphic), more than half of states (donors) got the short-end of the funding stick, while the other states (donees) received more than they contributed. Attempts were made in 2005 to level the funding field, but this time around, with the HTF approaching insolvency and the reauthorization process dragging out, it might be a tougher nut to crack.

Click here to view 'State-by-state return on gas-tax cash'
Analysis of USDOT/FHWA data, courtesy The Heritage Foundation