Triple bump at the pump

Wisconsin motorists are gettin' it stuck to 'em again, as Tommy Thompson would say.

There's a double -- well, maybe even a triple -- escalator at work.

First, prices are going sky high at the pump this week, for reasons no one seems to be able to provide.

Second, thanks to an antiquated state law called the minumum markup law, gas stations will be required to increase their profit on each gallon of gas they sell. Every time the wholesale cost goes up, the retail price goes up by an equal amount -- plus another 6 per cent.

Third, every year on April 1 Wisconsin automatically raises its gas tax to keep pace with inflation. Wisconsin already has one of the highest state gas taxes in the country, but it will go up today another .8 cent to 32.9 cents a gallon. And that without the legislature having to vote to raise the tax. It just happens. How convenient -- if you happen to be one of the people trying to pave over every remaining square inch of the state.

There are few encouraging words to offer, but there are a few. A couple of Republicans want to get rid of the minimum markup law, and Gov. Jim Doyle agrees. (He's been for repealing the law for about 20 years.) Story.

A couple of Dems want to end the gas tax indexing and make leggies vote if they want to raise the tax. Prospects for that happening are pretty slim, since the roadbuilders pretty much own the Capitol (although they have left a little grass on the Square). And nobody wants to vote to raise taxes. Story.