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Senators debate higher EV registration fees and a per-kilowatt charging tax as road funding gap grows
Summary
Three related bills proposing higher electric-vehicle registration surcharges and a tax on public charging stations drew hours of testimony Thursday in the Minnesota Senate Taxes Committee on how to replace declining gas-tax revenue for the Highway User Tax Distribution Fund.
Senators and outside witnesses debated three competing approaches to make electric vehicles and public charging contribute more to Minnesota’s road fund, with one bill recommended to pass out of committee.
Senate File 2688, authored by Senator Ann Johnson Stewart, would raise the annual registration surcharge on all-electric vehicles to $200, set a $100 surcharge for plug-in hybrids, and impose smaller, indexed surcharges on electric motorcycles and plug-in hybrid motorcycles. The committee recommended SF 2688 to pass and referred it to the Committee on Transportation.
Senator David Howe introduced Senate File 966, which would raise the all-electric passenger vehicle surcharge from $75 to $150, create new surcharges for plug-in hybrids and electric motorcycles, and tie the charges to the gas-tax indexing mechanism. That bill was laid over for future consideration. Senator Howe described the change as an effort to “bring into alignment” how EVs contribute toward the wear-and-tear costs that gasoline drivers currently pay through the fuel tax.
Senator Johnson Stewart also presented Senate File…
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