4 ms·

Petrol taxes are probably the fairest way to tax ICE based on usage short of having black-boxes in every car (which would in turn create a nice black market in

Petrol taxes are probably the fairest way to tax ICE based on usage short of having black-boxes in every car (which would in turn create a nice black market in itself for fiddling them) - heavier and less efficient vehicles naturally use more and so get charged more, the more you drive, the more you burn, the more you pay. I can't see a fairer way than that for ICE at the moment.

5555624 7y ago
The OP wants to eliminate petrol taxes on ICE vehicles to treat all vehicles the same way. Right now, an EV doesn't pay any petrol taxes, which are often used to maintain road infrastructure.
- dsfyu404ed 7y ago
  Since nobody is making EV heavy trucks yet and EVs are a small minority of road traffic they account for approximately none of the infrastructure wear and tear. It's a pure cash grab. If they need more money they should be up front about it rather than being smiley and trying to portray it as EV owners not paying their fair share. I say this as someone who buys a heck of a lot of gas.
Spooky23 7y ago
Fee based taxation at the vehicle level is there to slow electric adoption and benefit a few stakeholders, period. The obvious way to raise money from all motor vehicles today is LPR. The Federal government already has an extensive network of LPR and high resolution cameras on the interstate highway system for criminal and customs surveillance, and most states have extensive networks that can easily be scaled. You could even use LPR for demand based taxation, instead of mileage based systems, put fees on peak usage or vehicle class. The current system is significantly flawed anyway, because state policy varies, especially with trucks. A truck operating in New York may be gassing up In Pennsylvania, and be out of the jurisdiction of the state for safety and other regulation. Also commercial vehicles use flags of convenience for registration... rental vehicles are often registered in Arizona and Indiana.
dagw 7y ago
short of having black-boxes in every car You could have people self report. You could even include it on the tax returns. Require people to fill in the current odometer reading on every car they own and then do spot checks.
- cglace 7y ago
  Just make ev owners get “emissions checks” like everyone else. Mileage can be read there.
  - cannonedhamster 7y ago
    Not all states perform emissions checks. Almost all perform safety checks. No idea why EVs would be exempt from these so your solution would probably work.

5555624 7y ago

The OP wants to eliminate petrol taxes on ICE vehicles to treat all vehicles the same way. Right now, an EV doesn't pay any petrol taxes, which are often used to maintain road infrastructure.

dsfyu404ed 7y ago
Since nobody is making EV heavy trucks yet and EVs are a small minority of road traffic they account for approximately none of the infrastructure wear and tear. It's a pure cash grab. If they need more money they should be up front about it rather than being smiley and trying to portray it as EV owners not paying their fair share. I say this as someone who buys a heck of a lot of gas.

Spooky23 7y ago

Fee based taxation at the vehicle level is there to slow electric adoption and benefit a few stakeholders, period. The obvious way to raise money from all motor vehicles today is LPR. The Federal government already has an extensive network of LPR and high resolution cameras on the interstate highway system for criminal and customs surveillance, and most states have extensive networks that can easily be scaled. You could even use LPR for demand based taxation, instead of mileage based systems, put fees on peak usage or vehicle class. The current system is significantly flawed anyway, because state policy varies, especially with trucks. A truck operating in New York may be gassing up In Pennsylvania, and be out of the jurisdiction of the state for safety and other regulation. Also commercial vehicles use flags of convenience for registration... rental vehicles are often registered in Arizona and Indiana.

dagw 7y ago

short of having black-boxes in every car You could have people self report. You could even include it on the tax returns. Require people to fill in the current odometer reading on every car they own and then do spot checks.

cglace 7y ago
Just make ev owners get “emissions checks” like everyone else. Mileage can be read there.
- cannonedhamster 7y ago
  Not all states perform emissions checks. Almost all perform safety checks. No idea why EVs would be exempt from these so your solution would probably work.