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Does anyone know why fuel taxes are calculated by volume instead of value? That's the opposite of pretty much every other tax on goods in the country.
by desdiv 12y ago
Does anyone know why fuel taxes are calculated by volume instead of value? That's the opposite of pretty much every other tax on goods in the country.
- phil21 12y agoBecause fuel taxes are supposed to be an approximation of how many miles you drive, aka how much wear and tear you put on the road infrastructure. You put the same wear and tear on the road at $1/gal vs. $4/gal. Trying to create budgets against a commodity that rapidly changes prices as much as gas/diesel does would be rather difficult. For example, in 2015 we'd be forecasting huge budget shortfalls for any planned road maintenance due to the unforseen huge drop in gas prices.
- ta75757 12y agoFrom what I've read ordinary passenger vehicles put just about no strain on modern roads. Only heavy vehicles like semis do. Tax is tax, money is fungible.
- superuser2 12y agoEven if this is true, the business owners' argument to Congress would be that the consumer will pay for it either way; businesses that depend on transportation would just raise prices to compensate.
- ta75757 12y agoI am not opposed to the tax, I simply think it's pointless to talk about what it's "for". That's what I meant to convey with the second line. It's a tax. If you don't pay this one, you'll pay another. And the government will spend the money where/how it sees fit.
- forgotpasswd3x 12y agoI believe that it should the cost to repair roads should be the responsibility of those who cause the damage. Yes, this would raise cost of goods shipped via truck. If you're ordering things that need to be shipped via truck, you should be responsible for that damage. Why should I be taxed to fix road damage based on a metric that doesn't begin to accurately reflect my actual contribution to the problem? Additionally, if the trucking industry had to raise rates due to a higher 'road maintenance tax' this may also make more efficient forms of transportation more popular, ie trains.
- ThrustVectoring 12y agoFuel taxes are typically allocated towards road construction and maintenance. Fuel use is roughly proportional to road use, so it's roughly a tax that makes road users pay for their portion of road use. The fact that more fuel-efficient drivers pay less taxes is a bonus, since fuel use has negative externalities.
- tracker1 12y agoDepends on the commodity... cigarette taxes, for example, or other sin taxes... Personally, I don't understand why we don't have more flexible tariffs in place to secure against this kind of influence.