CHEYENNE - In an effort to generate revenue for the Wyoming Department of Transportation, Wyoming??s Senate tentatively approved a bill earlier this week to increase the state fuel tax by 10 cents per gallon, the Star-Tribune reports.

The proposal, House Bill 69, previously passed Wyoming??s House and received a favorable voice vote on the Senate floor on Tuesday. It is scheduled for two debates this week.

Wyoming has not raised its state fuels tax since 1998, and the 10-cent increase is expected to cost a typical Wyoming family an extra $114 per year. However, despite the 10-cent increase, bill sponsor Senator Michael Von Flatern said most motorists probably wouldn??t see more than a nickel increase in the price at the pump because fuel marketers blend gas taxes on a regional basis.

"Less than half of this will ever make it to the consumer," Von Flatern said, adding that 53% of the tax will be paid by non-residents.

Senator Larry Hicks tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill to substitute a 30-cent tax on large-nozzle diesel pumps used by trucks.