Md. considers surcharge on mammoth SUVs ($750)

Bakersfield Californian ^ | 2/15/05 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Driving a super-sized sport utility vehicle on Maryland roads would cost $750 more a year under a measure being considered by state lawmakers.

Delegate Bill Bronrott is promoting the registration renewal surcharge for owners of SUVs that weigh more than 6,000 pounds.

"This bill is ... about the largest, heaviest passenger vehicles that are the least fuel efficient and the most toxic to our air, land and water," the Democrat told a House committee hearing Tuesday.

SUVs covered by the legislation include the Hummer H2, Cadillac Escalade ESV, Lincoln Navigator and the GMC Yukon XL.

"They pose a highway safety hazard, and they disproportionately beat up our roads and bridges," said Bronrott, who acknowledged that the bill as written may not survive in the legislature.

Automobile dealers oppose an increase.

Maryland owners of vehicles over 3,700 pounds currently pay a renewal fee of $180 every two years, compared to a fee of $128 for vehicles under 3,700 pounds.

The state doesn't keep records of how many residents own SUVs weighing more than 6,000 pounds.

[Dallas59]

Why stop there?

[Malsua]

While I don't give a hoot about who drives what.

The fact remains that 60,000 pound Tractor Trailers do 80%+ of the damage to any road. The only way to fix that without charging EVERYONE is to sock it to folks that make no difference but that the state "feels" that they do.

[Atlas Sneezed]

They mention all the luxury ones, but ignore the ordinary Suburbans and Expeditions, not to mention all those environmentally-identical full-size pickup trucks.

[USNBandit]

We need to link this to the mileage tax thread.

In this case you get taxed for driving a gas guzzling vehicle. In the other you get taxed because you are driving a fuel efficient vehicle.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1343593/posts

[staytrue]

The expedition has been killed by Ford I believe, due to slow sales. For some reason , the Govt. thinks it is smarter than the people. Each person knows which car is best for him/her, the govt. should butt out of the decision making process.

[supercat]

I would like to see someone design a muscle car with some technologies to improve fuel economy without sacrificing peak power. A V8 which used variable delayed intake closure and which could switch between 'normal' and 'compound' mode operation could probably yield energy efficiency at moderate power levels that was better than that of conventional smaller engines without sacrificing much if anything in the way of peak power capability.

Although the added weight of such cars would likely prevent them from getting as good fuel economy as a Honda Civic, they could nonetheless be much better than most of the SUVs on the road today. Given that I suspect many SUV buyers really want muscle cars, this would thus be a change for the better.

[Frank_2001]

Just like a casino, the State always comes out ahead.......

[Graybeard58]

Blue state Illinois already has a $175 surcharge and there's no getting around it. I thought if I bought one in Missouri I wouldn't have to pay it but if it's registered and licensed in Illinois - I still pay it.

[lotusblos]

Is this America? This is the kind of crap you expect in socialist country populated by pin-dicks and airheads (like France).

[StormEye]

The DemonRAT controlled legislature is doing this to
embarrass a Republican governor and rip off more
money from the middle class. They want to show the
governor that his veto counts for nothing. So the
middle/working class of Maryland suffers. The DemonRATs of the Maryland legislature are hoping that all those who
voted for the Robert Ehrlich will get the message and vote for a Democrat next time or else more weird onerous taxes will be put in place next year at the next legislative session. (They also are doing this because they hate GW Bush and this is the only way they can lash out at him.) If it were not for Baltimore, Montgomery Co., Prince Georges Co. and Howard County Maryland would solidly Republican.

[Salamander]

"They pose a highway safety hazard, and they disproportionately beat up our roads and bridges,"

Oh, well then.
I'm assuming my fair state will be outlawing semis, buses and motorhomes too, right?
I know I feel much "safer" then.

[trumandogz]

If they could produce data that show that these vehicles tear-up roads worse than lighter vehicles than the tax may not be a bad idea.

[Vision]

Why is my home state so screwed up?

[Salamander]

Democrats.
Any more questions?...:)

[claudiustg]

---Is this America? This is the kind of crap you expect in socialist country populated by pin-dicks and airheads (like France).---

Like Bill Bronrott, Democrat.

[timestax]

It's those humongous dumpster trucks that are tearing up the highways.

[monkapotamus]

Umm I don't think so. I see them everywhere - they sell like hotcakes. Perhaps you are thinking of the Excursion.

The expedition has been killed by Ford I believe, due to slow sales. For some reason , the Govt. thinks it is smarter than the people. Each person knows which car is best for him/her, the govt. should butt out of the decision making process.

[scottybk]

Can I register the Sherman tank that I bought last weekend at the Army-Navy Surplus Sale? My wife wants to use it as a grocery-getter. I asked her if she'd prefer a Hummer, and she slapped me.

[Myrddin]

This certainly sounds like a "bill of attainder" designed to punish a group of people for simply owning a specific kind of vehicle. The U.S. Constitution forbids a "bill of attainder" because it amounts to punishment by legislative act without "due process".