Several U.S. states have or are proposing fees for EV drivers that are higher than the fees paid by owners of gas-powered vehicles on average, Consumer Reports wrote in an analysis Sept. 11.
Since owners of electric cars do not pay gas taxes that help fund public roads, 26 states have existing fees for EVs that would go toward the same purpose. But Consumer Reports said 11 of those states charge more than what gas-powered vehicle drivers pay.
Another 12 states have proposed implementing new fees or increasing current amounts, and the report said 10 of those proposals would require electric vehicle drivers to pay more than new gasoline-powered vehicles by 2025.
Annual fees from existing rules range from $50 to $225, with proposed fees ranging from $15 to $250.
The higher fees could "unfairly discourage electric vehicle adoption," the report said, and the percentage of states that already require EV drivers to pay a higher fee will increase to 69% from 42% by 2025.
By 2025, 83% of the proposed EV fees will be punitive, according to the report. In 2019, eight states passed or increased such fees, with seven of them forecast to be "extremely punitive" by 2025.
"This trend signals a dramatic increase in punitive fees that would also be likely to have a negative effect on consumer choice and access to the benefits of EVs," Consumer Reports analysts Chris Harto and Shannon Baker-Branstetter wrote in the report.
The report found that, on average, the EV fees that are in place generate 0.04% of current state highway revenues, with proposed fees expected to generate the same amount. By 2025, the report estimates that the fees will generate an average of less than 0.3% of expected state highway revenues.
"The results show that the trend on EV fees increasingly disadvantages EV owners, while raising very little revenue to support highway construction and maintenance," the report said, adding that money from registration fees, tolls and other sources of tax revenue contribute more to road funds.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., introduced legislation in the Senate that would end federal electric vehicle tax credits while requiring all EV drivers to help fund public roads. The Fairness for Every Driver Act would require EV drivers to pay a fee that would go to the Highway Trust Fund.
The fee would be "collected in the same manner as taxes," according to the legislation. So far, the legislation has not moved ahead.
The Consumer Reports analysts said that if lawmakers decide such fees are best for their state, they could introduce them slowly.
"[Lawmakers] could phase in the fees slowly over several years or tie them to certain targets related to EV market share to help minimize the potential for the fees to suppress the rate of EV adoption," the report said.
