South Carolina Statehouse Blog

Columbia, S.C. - May 13, 2009 - Today’s Waste of the Day is mileage reimbursement rates that have remained the same after gas spiked last year at nearly $4 per gallon, but haven’t been adjusted downward since then to reflect lower fuel costs.

When the budget passed last year, mileage reimbursement was increased from 44.5 cents per mile to 50.5 cents per mile.  Since that time, the cost of gasoline has dropped 45 percent. Each additional penny of reimbursement costs the state $380,000, and taking the reimbursement rate back to 44.5 cents would save the state $2.28 million annually.