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Sean Duffy , President - elect Donald Trump ’s nominee to manoeuvre the U.S. Department of Transportation , thinks owners of galvanic vehicles should bear to use roadstead .
“ How to do that , I reckon , is a little more ambitious , ” Duffy said at his ratification listening Wednesday before the Senate Commerce Committee .
The former Republican lawgiver is correct that it would be a challenge to enact such a change that would regard owners of Tesla , Rivian , Lucid , and other EVs .
Federally funded road repairs are mainly paid for by taxes garner on diesel motor and gas . EVs do n’t eat natural gas , which means they do n’t contribute to fuel revenue enhancement revenue . Some debate this creates a financing gap .
It ’s not within the DOT ’s power to make this change on its own . The way would need to operate with Congress to run new legislating pass taxes or fees . It might , for example , amend the Highway Revenue Act , which was passed in 1956 and establishes a federal fuel tax . Today , it’s18.3 cent per gallon .
Lawmakers would also need to make out up with a raw effectuation fabric , one that could potentially measure and account EV mileage or electrical energy usage . How to do this accurately and in a path that ensures privacy would be a technological hurdle . And such a fee would likely face outrageous opposition from environmental proponent and automakers .
In many states , EV owners already pay up to use road in parliamentary law to even out for the fact that they do n’t contribute to fuel revenue enhancement revenues . Some , like Georgia and Illinois , charge a unconditional fee ( and in Illinois ’ showcase that fee ishigherthan what proprietor of accelerator - burn cars pay ) . Others like Utah charge free-base on weight or mileage , which is chase after by the state .
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Duffy ’s statement is part of wide politicization of galvanizing vehicle from the incoming Trump administration . Trump has framed EVs as emblematic of openhanded policies and has threatened to roll back the EV tax credits that were a part of President Joe Biden ’s Inflation Reduction Act . During his first terminus , Trump also rolled back Obama - earned run average Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard that were designed to avail spread adoption of EVs and hybrid .
In contrast , Trump has focus on coal and vegetable oil ; the motto “ Drill , babe , exercise , ” became one of his summon cries in the last election .
