Ways & Means reviews H.941 mileage-based user fee, debates flat-rate rollout and hybrid expansion

Damien Leonard of the Office of Legislative Council briefed the Ways & Means Committee on H.941, a mileage-based user fee proposal that would shift some vehicle-road revenue collection from per-gallon taxes and the current EV infrastructure fee to a per-mile charge. "For the record, I'm Damien Leonard with the Office of Legislative Council," he told members and walked through the Senate's extensive amendments to the House bill.

The Senate version restores pay-as-you-go and estimated-payment options and adds a temporary flat-rate option the legislature would keep in place for the program's first two years. Under those provisions the bill includes a $178 two‑year cap (or $89 for a one‑year registration), which Leonard said is "about a $178" and sits slightly above the expected average MBUF amount (the fiscal estimate cited an expected average near $154). A core calculation in the draft sets the mileage fee at 1.4¢ per mile — "1.4¢ per mile traveled, calculated based on the difference in the odometer readings," Leonard said — which the committee was told equates to $1,400 per thousand miles when scaled.

The draft also changes definitions to use the Senate's…