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Electric vehicles were supposed to represent a cheaper, cleaner alternative to petrol-powered cars. But with fuel prices pushing past $4.50 a gallon and EV adoption growing, lawmakers are now turning their attention to what they see as an imbalance in how road funding works. And EV drivers are about to feel the consequences.
The US Congress have proposed bipartisan legislation that would impose a $130 annual fee on electric vehicle owners. They argue that EV drivers are currently getting a free ride on the roads they use every day.
The decision is based on the federal gas tax, which currently sits at 18.3 cents per gallon and has not changed since 1993. That tax funds the Highway Trust Fund, which pays for road maintenance and repairs nationwide.
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Because EV drivers do not buy petrol, they do not contribute to that fund, and as more vehicles switch to electric, the gap in road funding grows wider.
"The BUILD America 250 Act ensures that electric vehicle owners begin paying their fair share for the use of our roads," said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves, Republican of Missouri.
Under the proposal, EV owners would pay $130 per year starting in 2029, with that figure rising by $5 every two years until it reaches $150. Plug-in hybrid drivers would face a smaller fee of $35 annually, which would increase over time to $50.
Environmental and EV advocacy groups have hit back hard at the proposal, claiming it punishes drivers for being encouraged to go green.
"This draft includes an irresponsible tax for EV and plug-in hybrid drivers that will fail at meaningfully closing the Highway Trust Fund shortfall," explained Katherine García, director of the Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All Campaign. "Now is the time to incentivise, not penalise, clean transportation options that curb emissions harmful to our health and climate."
Albert Gore, executive director of the Zero Emission Transportation Association, called the proposed fee 'simply a punitive tax that would disproportionately impact adopters of electric vehicles, with no meaningful impact on maintaining the HTF.'
Research from Consumer Reports found that the average American pays between $70 and $90 per year in federal gas taxes, which is considerably less than the proposed $130 EV fee.
Consumer Reports analysts also pointed out that the fixed fee structure shifts costs away from commercially driven vehicles such as 'delivery vans, robotaxis, and rideshares, which can drive up to 10 times as many miles as a personal vehicle.'
The proposed federal fee is far from actualisation. It still needs to be formally introduced and pass both chambers of Congress before it can become law, which is targeted at 30 September.
