As I get older, I wonder how people keep falling for this tactic. They will take away the tax and charge by the mile, and then, when they need more money, they will bring back the gas tax but keep the per mile fee.
Yawn.
I didn’t bother reading the article. Did someone really say they would only charge for mileage and not have the gas tax as well? I can’t imagine anyone admitting to stopping a tax, especially a democrat. How many hybrids in CA using less fuel per mile than normal vehicles? or total electric cars using no fuel? This idea is but one solution, I’ve heard others with more merit, like turning over most of the Federal gas tax to block grants to the States for maintenance. The Fed’s keeping enough to maintain the Interstate System.
Here is the problem. Cars are getting better mileage and thus paying less total tax. The tax at the pump is mostly used to repair roads.
As mileage continue to increase and as electric car use continues to expand, the situation gets worse.
The question is what do you propose as an alternative to the tax on miles driven?
At the federal level it is a bit different situation. However, there is movement towards the miles driven tax federally also.
At the federal level, complaints over the miles driven tax are justified because the new system undoes a very efficient tax system.
The federal excise tax is collected at the refinery and is about 98 percent efficient in tax collection. Meaning it does not take much administrative effort to collect.
The miles driven tax on the other hand costs about 25% of every tax dollar collected for administration. It is a complicated matter to track and tax all the cars vs collecting at the refinery.
So why would an efficient tax be traded for one that so inefficient. The answer is because no member of congress is willing to go on record raising the excise tax on gasoline.
The reason they are afraid to do that is because voters would get made at them. So along comes the complicated and wasteful method that does not require their vote.
Better for them, when they see you at rallies and meet-and-greets they can get your favor by saying they are against the federal miles driven tax and blame the Administration.
Is that the same logic that leads to having toll booths on roads that were built 50 years ago? lol
They’ll keep the gas tax instead of exchanging it for this scam, but will change the name of the tax, as well call it a fee.
No, what they will do is go ahead and pass the per mile tax
after it becomes law, they will come with endless excuses as
to why the per gallon tax can’t be eliminated at this time.
Mike