As gas tax revenue declines, the United States has been looking at a bunch of ways to get around taxing electric vehicle drivers. The latest idea: charge a fee based on vehicle weight. And EVs are notoriously heavier than their gas-powered cousins.
The Highway Trust Fund, which finances the federal government’s highway and mass transit projects, may reach insolvency by 2028, meaning a 46% spending cut is looming overhead. Congress has sent over $275 billion from the federal government’s general fund since 2008 as funds dwindle. The Highway Trust Fund is largely funded by the gas tax, which hasn’t increased since 1993 despite inflation.
And now, there are fewer drivers paying the gas tax than ever before. The culprit? EVs.
EVs, SUVs, and trucks may be looking at higher fees
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which has represented the auto industry since 2020, has developed its own solution to the gas tax issue. To help fund highway and bridge repairs, they have suggested a single fee based on vehicle weight. Basically, the heavier your vehicle, the higher the fee you pay.
This way, it’s not just gas-powered vehicles bearing the load. The way it’s set up now, electric vehicles don’t have to pay any taxes toward road infrastructure, even though they wear down roads. In fact, they wear down roads more than most gas-powered vehicles since they weigh more. And heavy trucks are even worse.
Said University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Institute for Physical Infrastructure and Transportation engineer Mark Gottlieb: “Load-related damage to pavement and bridges is caused almost exclusively by heavy trucks. The deterioration from a single large truck can easily be equal to that of thousands of autos,” Gottlieb said. “The contribution from autos and light trucks is insignificant. It makes no difference if they are EV or internal combustion.”
For this reason, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation feels it’s fair to charge a higher fee for heavier vehicles — they’re causing the most damage.
“This policy would guarantee every vehicle on the road contributes something to maintaining America’s transportation network,” Alliance for Automotive Innovation CEO John Bozzella said. “Those driving older, less fuel-efficient vehicles or who travel long distances bear the financial burden.
“That’s not fair.”
EVs keep getting taxed and it’s starting to feel like an attack
Speaking of unfair, electric vehicle activists have been fighting against other proposed taxes for EVs.
Last year, the Trump Administration ended the $7,500 federal EV tax credit as President Donald Trump moved away from Joe Biden’s goal of 50% of new vehicles sold in the U.S. being electric by 2030. It seems the hype around EVs has been waning, and automakers have started pivoting away from their all-electric plans. Now, it feels like the government keeps looking for ways to discourage people from buying and owning EVs.
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is currently pushing for a $250 annual fee on EVs. Representative Sam Graves recently said they’d like to get money from EVs,” especially with the funding for highways and bridges predicted to increase to $550 billion for the next five years.
However, gas-powered cars only pay $88 per year in federal fuel taxes, making the EV fee seem a bit high. Some states also already have fees for EVs in place. The $250 fee would be stacked on top of these. Some states have flat fees ranging from $50 to over $200, while some have fees calculated by weight or charge per mile driven.
At this point, it feels like there is a war against EVs in the United States, even though just a few years ago, people were pushing for an all-electric future.
