ANCHORAGE (AP) - Alaska lawmakers have advanced a bill that would double the state’s motor fuel tax, which has not changed since 1970 and is the lowest in the U.S.

The bill passed in the House Transportation Committee on March 16 and moves next to the House Finance Committee for review. If it can pass the full House, it would go to the Senate, which approved a similar bill last year that failed to win passage in the House.

The bill would double the state’s gas tax to 16 cents per gallon. Most of the $34 million a year in additional revenue would go for highway maintenance. The bill has...