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Home / Mileage Tax Getting CloserMileage Tax Getting Closer
Last Updated on Friday, 20 February 2009 12:04 Written by rslcpol Friday, 20 February 2009 10:28
We’ve been telling you about this the past couple weeks; now it’s national news.
From Newsday:
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says he wants to consider taxing motorists based on how many miles they drive rather than how much gasoline they burn — an idea that has angered drivers in some states where it has been proposed.
Gasoline taxes that for nearly half a century have paid for the federal share of highway and bridge construction can no longer be counted on to raise enough money to keep the nation’s transportation system moving, LaHood said in an interview with The Associated Press.
“We should look at the vehicular miles program where people are actually clocked on the number of miles that they traveled,” the former Illinois Republican lawmaker said.
Most transportation experts see a vehicle miles traveled tax as a long-term solution, but Congress is being urged to move in that direction now by funding pilot projects.
This is an issue that will not be garnering much bi-partisan (whatever that means now) support. Here’s a break down of reasons some believe it’s a non-starter. Really, government mandated GPS tracking in your personal vehicle – isn’t that a bit much. What about driving on private roads? Toll roads? Jeep trails? Where do we not sign up?