"It's unpopular frankly, on both sides of the aisle for many different reasons. "The road usage tax, I just don't see a future for that," the Centralia senator said. "We have to look beyond our traditional ways," Senate Republican Leader John Braun of Centralia conceded, but that was his only point of agreement with majority Democrats. Republicans, who are in the minority in the Legislature, wanted to slam the brakes on the pay-per-mile idea during their weekly media briefing Tuesday. The year 2030 coincides with a nonbinding goal the Washington Legislature previously established to end sales of new gasoline-powered cars in the state. The Fey legislation sets a target date of 2030 to change over from voluntary to mandatory pay-per-mile, but it would be up to future legislators to actually make that so. "We do wholeheartedly support this effort to create a more equitable system for EVs to pay their fair share of state road costs," Seattle Electric Vehicle Association VP Grace Reamer testified Tuesday. Low mileage EV drivers complain the current system overcharges them compared to the equivalent gasoline-powered vehicle. It looks to pencil out for drivers of fully electric cars who drive an average amount of miles per year or less. Fey would give hybrid and EV drivers the option to replace the flat fees they pay with a 2.5 cents per mile road usage charge, beginning in July 2026.ĭrivers could voluntarily opt in to the pay-per-mile system if they figure it would save them money. Right now, Washingtonians who own plug-in electric cars pay an extra $225 in annual registration fees. "This is so discriminatory to people that are living in rural areas that have to drive a long distance just to get around."ĮV drivers could reap savings in the near term "I'm frustrated and angry on behalf of a lot of taxpayers that feel like they're just getting nickeled and dimed to death," Eyman said. Eyman re-posted testimony he delivered to the state House last year to underscore his concern that the mileage-based tax would be an added burden on drivers rather than simply a replacement. Longtime anti-tax activist Tim Eyman and groups such as Conservative Ladies of Washington urged their followers this week to bombard legislators with messages in opposition to the pay-per-mile tax. The proposed transition to taxing drivers by the mile is provoking backseat griping, though. "We're not going to be able to fund all of the projects that we had planned to have funded." "We're in a mode where things are only going to get worse in terms of revenues," Fey said. Fey said Washington's transportation budget is already feeling the squeeze from increased fuel efficiency and vehicle electrification. States rely heavily on gas taxes to pay for road construction and maintenance. "Gasoline revenues are headed downward," state House Transportation Committee Chair Jake Fey (D-Tacoma) said at the start of an abbreviated public hearing in Olympia Tuesday. Meanwhile, a Democratic state representative in Salem introduced a bill to make the Oregon road usage charge mandatory for vehicles that get 30 mpg or better beginning with the 2028 model year. On Tuesday, Washington state legislators began discussing whether to copy Oregon's voluntary pay-by-the-mile program with an eye toward getting electric car drivers used to the idea first. But imposition of any new tax tends to be politically fraught, and this one is no exception. Would you prefer to pay a couple of cents for every mile you drive in exchange for not having to pay gas tax or those steep electric car registration fees? A mileage-based tax is the top choice of Pacific Northwest policymakers to make up for the long-term decline in gas tax revenue.
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