Utah’s Gas Tax and Registration Fees As EVs and hybrid cars become more common on roadways, states across the nation are faced with coming up with ways to replace the fuel tax that they would have received from the purchase of gasoline. Traditionally, the tax monies that are collected from fuel purchases are used to help fund the maintenance and construction of state and local roads. With the loss in tax revenue, states need to find ways to keep their roads maintained and infrastructure growing to accommodate population growth. The looming and imminent threat of an ever-widening gap between states’ gas tax proceeds and their transportation budgets has led to some hard conversations. Many states have implemented stopgap measures, including imposing additional taxes and registration fees on EVs and adding per-kilowatt-hour taxes to electricity accessed at public charging stations. Over the past few years, Utah legislators have considered a number of options to shore up road funding. These include raising vehicle registration fees, higher gas taxes, using money from the state’s general funds or creating more toll roads, all of which have been unpopular in polling. The federal government is not exempt from these revenue losses and is about to launch a pilot Road Usage Charge program, funded by $125 million from the infrastructure measure President Biden signed into law in November 2021. The program is a payper-mile charge instead of a tax paid per gallon on fuel. There is some consumer skepticism when it comes to the Road Usage Charge program as a tracking device is placed on the vehicle to track trips and driving performance, including braking, cornering and speed. The program also provides each user with a driving score and mileage reporting for road usage. As of today, Utah, Oregon and Virginia have adopted and are generating revenue from road usage charges. Utah’s Road Usage Charge program in Utah is voluntary for electric vehicle owners. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT Continued on page 22 20 UTAH AUTO DEALER
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