Mike Zito of NRMCA producer member Titan American in Florida recently evaluated property taxes for asphalt and concrete/cement producing facilities in South Florida’s tri-county area, reports NRMCA Senior National Resource Director Amy Miller. While this effort was somewhat painstaking, the results were more than interesting: the tax records proved that concrete/cement businesses pay 80% of the property taxes but  have only 2% of the market share of roads.

"Governments should be supporting the businesses that fund them," Zito said. "At the very least, these businesses should be given the opportunity to compete. Building concrete roads is a long-term investment and in some cases can provide front-end savings. To boot, supporting businesses within a local economy means recycling a much larger share of revenue back into the local economy, enriching the community as a whole, opposed to supporting foreign oil producing nations."