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+ - New Fed Agency Proposed to Tax Cars by the Mile 6

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes "Just when you thought your commute couldn't get any worse, The Hill reports that the Obama administration has floated a transportation authorization bill that would require the study and implementation of a plan to tax automobile drivers based on how many miles they drive. The plan is a part of the administration's 'Transportation Opportunities Act', and calls for spending $200 million to implement a new Surface Transportation Revenue Alternatives Office tasked with creating a 'study framework that defines the functionality of a mileage-based user fee system and other systems.' The office would be required to consider four factors — the capability of states to enforce payment, the reliability of technology, administrative costs, and 'user acceptance' — in field trials slated to begin within four years at unspecified sites. Forbes suggests the so-called vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax should be called the Rube Goldberg Gas Tax, because while its objective is the same as the gas tax, the way it collects revenue is extremely complex, costly and cumbersome. IBM, on the other hand, finds a place for a VMT in its Smarter Planet plan, arguing that 'usage-based tax models such as road-user charging based on miles driven, zone entry charges, or tolls can replace gas tax revenues while helping shape behavior.' So, to paraphrase James Hong and Jim Young, is the VMT Smart-or-Not?"
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New Fed Agency Proposed to Tax Cars by the Mile More

New Fed Agency Proposed to Tax Cars by the Mile

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  • WHAT THE HELL??? You want to tax me on the usage of the car I paid tax on when I purchased it, that I pay tax on to license it, that I pay tx on to have it maintained and that I already pay tx on the gas required to operate it? If a single congressman, senator or presidential candidate supports this moronic idea they should be tarred, feathered and run out of town on a rail.

  • We should have to pay for the mistakes of the administration because they don't know how to budget or spend their money properly. This is ridiculous ... we already pay out the rear end for EVERYTHING. Don't you just love how those who claim to love this nation are driving it right into the ground?
  • They already do this. The Mass Pike, NY Thruway, NJ Pike, all "tax" you by how far you go. Simple enough. Seems to work well enough. (The EZ pass is a great little invention, at least insofar as it speeds things up a bit). Now, could you do this on every city street? Probably not worth it. As to whether one should charge usage fees for things like roads, well, that's another debate, but you're going to pay for it one way or the other. Since the private sector has demonstrated that it won't build such thin

  • Or, "how can we extract some more money from drivers, without getting pitched out of office due to high gasoline prices?" It's a regressive tax, so it hits the poor and middle-class the hardest. Not to mention that it's essentially a tax on economic activity, which is exactly what we don't need. Yes - stay at home and don't spend money. That'll bring the economy back in no time! </sarcasm>

No one wants war. -- Kirk, "Errand of Mercy", stardate 3201.7

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