Yea, the argument that it's a usage tax falls apart when you point out that, even before the movement to fuel efficient vehicles, a gas tax always applied to di

Yea, the argument that it's a usage tax falls apart when you point out that, even before the movement to fuel efficient vehicles, a gas tax always applied to different people differently, regardless of their usage, as so many cars get different mileage, require more expensive forms of gas, etc. Unless someone somehow tries to make an argument that the variation in tax burden is somehow progressive (which is ridiculous unless they're arguing that wealthy people as a rule drive less efficient cars), then there's really no way to claim that it's actually a use tax.