It’s a bad day for electric car owners in the US; it looks like the taxman has finally caught up with them.
The US state Senate has just approved a bill which includes a measure to impose a $100 annual fee on electric cars to make up for the loss of gas-tax revenue.
Under the new electric car bill, drivers of EVs will pay the fee every year when they renew their vehicle’s registration. The sum-while only small-is a significant step towards encroaching on one of the major perks of running an electric car-their low running costs and taxation.
According to the Seattle Times, Senator Mary Margaret Haugen of Camano Island, included the fee on her transportation budget, insisting that it was only right that EV drivers help pay towards the maintenance of the roads they use.
She told the paper: "We recognize they’re [electric cars] an important part of the future, but it needs to help pay its fair share.”
The Washington State Department of Transportation estimates that drivers with petrol (or gasoline cars as they are called in the US) pay about $200 a year in gas tax. The state gas tax is 37.5 cents per gallon (much less than here in the UK at around 80p a litre).
The bill will now move to the House for final approval before President Barack Obama can make it law.
