So where I live they fund roads and road repair mostly with the taxes generated from the sale of gasoline. The state congress is currently considering legislation to add a yearly flat tax for electric car owners. The reasoning is that since they are using the roads but aren’t purchasing gas, they aren’t contributing what they should. They also project that the gas tax revenue will decrease with the increase of electric and hybrid vehicles, although the gallons of taxable gasoline in the state has consistently gone up for the last 5 years to the highest levels ever.

Some people say that a flat tax for electric vehicles isn’t fair because it it doesn’t take into account the amount of road usage, unlike the gas tax. If added, it should be based on mileage.

Others say that electric vehicles help reduce other state costs because of their reduced environmental impact and they should be incentivized by increasing the gas tax instead, not taxed.

Still others argue that increasing taxes on gasoline disproportionately affects the poor and larger families that can’t afford an electric or hybrid vehicle.

What do you guys think?

**edited to add**

The proposed tax is $275/yr. Roughly equivalent to the amount of tax generated by purchasing about 14 gallons of gas a week. In addition, electricity is taxed but revenues are not used for funding roads.