Now that the state’s gas tax will be raised 10 cents a gallon during the next three years, more difficult decisions remain and first-term Rep. Ed Oliver (R-Dadeville) said Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Legislature have proven they possess the political willpower to make them.

“The governor is leading our state,” Oliver said. “She has four or five things she wants to do and she’s doing what she feels is right. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. We’ve got gambling and prisons and Medicaid to come. This is a tough legislative quadrennium and I am proud to be a part of a legislature that is moving the state forward. I’m 62 years old and all I’ve heard for years is, ‘They’re a bunch of crooks and they’re lining their pockets.’ I have four children and six cars — I’m the last person who wants to pay more for gas and the state doesn’t reimburse me for driving around in my district.”