WA headed for Road Usage Tax

[Borderland]

Looks like we're going to start paying for the miles we drive instead of gallons of fuel we use. I knew it was coming.

Washington is one of 14 states in the pilot-program process. Five states, including Oregon, have already enacted RUC programs.

I'm not sure if that's a bad thing but it will certainly piss off those who own hybrids and electric vehicles. Oh well.

I still own a vehicle that burns fossil fuel so it matters little to me. My MPG is 22. I looked at my odo today and figured out that I average about 7K a year which is way less than the average driver. I suspect that the price of fuel will drop substantially if the RUT law replaces the states gas tax which is 0.49/gal.

I think this new trend was the result of the state losing revenue from so many electric vehicles which they promoted via state sales tax. Two of my 3 neighbors own EV's. Those of us who are poor still drive polluters.

If your car gets more than 20 mpg, you could see a very small [pennies] increase in the amount of taxes paid for roads,” WSTC Executive Director Reema Griffith said in an email. If your car gets less than 20 mpg, you would pay a little less in taxes.

There might be a new F-250 in my future. Get this done all you liberal democratic state legislators. I support it.

https://komonews.com/news/local/wash...b-10b0ad42209c

[cheby]

Looks like we're going to start paying for the miles we drive instead of gallons of fuel we use. I knew it was coming.



I'm not sure if that's a bad thing but it will certainly piss off those who own hybrids and electric vehicles. Oh well.

I still own a vehicle that burns fossil fuel so it matters little to me. My MPG is 22. I looked at my odo today and figured out that I average about 7K a year which is way less than the average driver. I suspect that the price of fuel will drop substantially if the RUT law replaces the states gas tax which is 0.49/gal.

I think this new trend was the result of the state losing revenue from so many electric vehicles which they promoted via state sales tax. Two of my 3 neighbors own EV's. Those of us who are poor still drive polluters.



There might be a new F-250 in my future. Get this done all you liberal democratic state legislators. I support it.

https://komonews.com/news/local/wash...b-10b0ad42209c

Making shitholes. Step by step, law by law...

[0ddl0t]

Pretty dumb. A $200 obd2 tool will rewrite odometers in a matter of seconds. It also doesn't account for miles driven in another state (e.g. folks who live near Vancouver and work near Portland)

[MistWolf]

What about miles driven off-road?

[Totem Polar]

This, on top of the weight penalty that everyone already pays for road maintenance in WA state.

Which I’m fine with, save for the fact that my 435lb motorcycle pays the same weight penalty as my 4k lb Highlander.

[Navin Johnson]

The problem is the taxes will overlap between fuel taxes and mileage taxes, and we will all receive dry anal fornication, not by choice.

[RoyGBiv]

Gasoline tax is already a use-based tax.... adding a distance tax is double penetration.

[Borderland]

Pretty dumb. A $200 obd2 tool will rewrite odometers in a matter of seconds. It also doesn't account for miles driven in another state (e.g. folks who live near Vancouver and work near Portland)

But that's illegal.

I'm sure the honor system will work, especially when it comes to paying taxes.

My guess is the state will read your odo when you renew your license every year. Then do a retina scan to see if you are lying when they interrogate you.

Notice the state didn't label it a tax. It's a charge.

[HeavyDuty]

Carbon based = gas tax.

Electric = mileage.

What’s the hard part of doing it this way?

[Borderland]

Carbon based = gas tax.

Electric = mileage.

What’s the hard part of doing it this way?

Good question. Probably never occurred to any of our legislative members.

The only problem I see with it is hybrids that use both. Maybe they just get a surcharge on their license for being switch hitters.