Caltrans Pilot Study for Pay-by-the-Mile Fee rather than Gas Tax

[andy3175]

Caltrans is conducting a pilot program for pay-by-the-mile fee as opposed to gas tax at http://www.dot.ca.gov/road_charge/. Some related article excerpts follow ...

http://la.curbed.com/archives/2016/01/california_road_charge_mileage_tax.php

The California Road Charge Pilot Program is seeking 5,000 volunteers to participate in a study to determine the best method for tallying a driver's mileage, and whether road charging would actually be an effective alternative to the gas tax. Volunteers will participate in the study for nine months, starting in the summer, but will not be charged for their driving during the pilot program. Once Caltrans has the data, the California State Transportation Agency will issue a report to state legislators with their recommendations. It's then up to lawmakers to adopt any mileage-based fee statewide.

Increases in fuel efficiency over the past few decades have put a dent in the gas tax's profitability. That, combined with the fact that the tax hasn't changed in 20 years to keep up with inflation, has caused revenues to plummet. Today, the tax only brings in $2.3 billion out of the $8 billion needed each year for road repair and maintenance. Officials are hoping road charging will help close the gap.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-mileage-fee-20160119-story.html

The California Department of Transportation is seeking 5,000 volunteers for an experimental program that will charge motorists a fee based on how far they drive -- a proposal that could replace the state gas tax as a way to fund highway maintenance and repairs.

Volunteers will participate in the California Road Charge Pilot Program, which was created by the Legislature in 2014 to test the feasibility of so-called mileage-based user fees.

The dry run is scheduled to begin this summer and last for nine months. Participating motorists will test various mileage reporting methods, but they won't be charged fees for the distances they drive.

State officials are trying to determine if a fee of up to a few pennies per mile would be more effective at raising revenue for road projects than the state gas tax of 36 cents a gallon.

According to Caltrans, the current tax generates only enough revenue to fund $2.3 billion out of $8-billion worth of highway repair and maintenance that is needed every year.

The huge gap in funding, officials say, has resulted from cars with better gas mileage, including hybrids and electric vehicles, and the fact that the gas tax has not been increased for more than 20 years.

[Quillz]

I really don't think this would work out. Paying by the mile would likely just drive more people to either a) drive less, defeating the purpose or b) use mass transit, which still generates revenue, but probably less than this program would.

Could merely raising the gas tax not be efficient enough? People hate taxes, but I think they'd rather have a relatively flat fee increase than a mileage-based one.

[GaryV]

36 cents per gallon fuel tax comes out around 1 to 2 cents per mile, depending on your fuel economy (and less for some, 0 for electrics).  So "a few pennies" per mile would definitely result in an increase.  How much is a few?  3, 4, 7?

It doesn't say how they intend on capturing the data - perhaps that's what will be decided by the study with 5000 volunteers.  The link to the government site in one of the stories does say something about protecting privacy, so I'm guessing it will be some kind of transponder system.  Would out of state driving be counted?  Nor does it say how they intend to collect the mileage tax.  Send out monthly bills?

[SteveG1988]

36 cents per gallon fuel tax comes out around 1 to 2 cents per mile, depending on your fuel economy (and less for some, 0 for electrics).  So "a few pennies" per mile would definitely result in an increase.  How much is a few?  3, 4, 7?

It doesn't say how they intend on capturing the data - perhaps that's what will be decided by the study with 5000 volunteers.  The link to the government site in one of the stories does say something about protecting privacy, so I'm guessing it will be some kind of transponder system.  Would out of state driving be counted?  Nor does it say how they intend to collect the mileage tax.  Send out monthly bills?

Progressive snapshot.

[GaryV]

Progressive snapshot.

They'd need a device that works better than the one I got from my insurance company.  I couldn't find the OBD port in one of our cars, despite looking at the website pictures on their site.  The other car I found the port just fine, but when I put the device in, you couldn't close the cover panel on the car.  It would have hung down right in front of my knee.

I decided to forgo the "discount" they offered and sent the devices back.

[Sub-Urbanite]

I use the Oregon pilot system and I'm pretty happy with it. It does plug into my OBD and wirelessly transmits data to ODOT, including where I drive, how fast I'm going, etc. I have yet to hear a complaint from ODOT for my propensity to drive like a Californian on Oregon's more languid freeways.

I get about 18 mpg and I've been paying about a quarter a month in road use charges on top of what I'm already paying in gas tax. Through the OBD reader it knows how much gas I use so it's able to tally the tax on that.

When I started in July I prepaid $25 into my account. I still have $23 in it.

[vdeane]

Big brother is watching...

[The Ghostbuster]

The Gas Tax has been on its way out for some time, and raising it is politically impossible. While I would like more congestion pricing in the most congested areas, a by-the-mile tax may work just as well. Of course, I could be wrong.

[jeffandnicole]

The Gas Tax has been on its way out for some time, and raising it is politically impossible. While I would like more congestion pricing in the most congested areas, a by-the-mile tax may work just as well. Of course, I could be wrong.

Gas Tax alternatives has been discussed for some time, but it is by far not on its way out.  PA is one state that has raised the tax, by a fair amount.

[roadfro]

I really don't think this would work out. Paying by the mile would likely just drive more people to either a) drive less, defeating the purpose or b) use mass transit, which still generates revenue, but probably less than this program would.

Could merely raising the gas tax not be efficient enough? People hate taxes, but I think they'd rather have a relatively flat fee increase than a mileage-based one.

Raising the gas tax isn't enough in the long term. As cars get more fuel efficient, they contribute less to the gas tax.

Say you have a hypothetical standard sedan that gets 25 mpg and an identical hybrid model that gets 50 mpg. Assume both cars have the same weight and are driven the same 10,000 miles. The hybrid model has contributed just as much wear on the roads as the standard model, but the hybrid driver has contributed half as much in gas taxes. An all-electronic version of the same sedan would cause the same road wear as the other two, but contribute nothing via gas tax at all... A mileage-based tax would charge each of these three cars the same.


With that said, there are pluses and minuses in either system.

[kkt]

If you're really trying to tax by road wear, you should ignore cars altogether and just tax trucks by weight.

[mcarling]

Several states have recently raised the gas tax, including WA.  In my opinion, a gas tax increase is a far better solution than monitoring everyone's driving.  Time to read George Orwell's 1984 again.

[Sub-Urbanite]

Oregon's system gives drivers a no-GPS option, for the paranoid among us.

I'd rather they track me and credit me for the miles I drive on private/out-of-state roads.

Several states have recently raised the gas tax, including WA.  In my opinion, a gas tax increase is a far better solution than monitoring everyone's driving.  Time to read George Orwell's 1984 again.

[US 41]

I'd rather the gas tax be raised than have a mileage tax. In all honesty if my state started charging a mileage tax I would just go open up a P.O. Box somewhere and license my car and myself in a neighboring state that didn't have a mileage tax.

[kkt]

I'd rather the gas tax be raised than have a mileage tax. In all honesty if my state started charging a mileage tax I would just go open up a P.O. Box somewhere and license my car and myself in a neighboring state that didn't have a mileage tax.

Big Brother won't like that.  Around here, the police have nothing better to do than keep track of out of state plates that are regularly seen parked for more than a couple of months.  Back when we had the monorail tax, they were also looking for people who registered their cars out of King County but lived here.  King County cars had a picture of a monorail on the license plate tab - the only monorail we ever got.

[Rothman]

I really don't think this would work out. Paying by the mile would likely just drive more people to either a) drive less, defeating the purpose or b) use mass transit, which still generates revenue, but probably less than this program would.

These avoidance measures actually don't defeat the purpose.  Fewer cars on the road = less wear and tear to maintain.

[US 41]

I'd rather the gas tax be raised than have a mileage tax. In all honesty if my state started charging a mileage tax I would just go open up a P.O. Box somewhere and license my car and myself in a neighboring state that didn't have a mileage tax.

Big Brother won't like that.  Around here, the police have nothing better to do than keep track of out of state plates that are regularly seen parked for more than a couple of months.  Back when we had the monorail tax, they were also looking for people who registered their cars out of King County but lived here.  King County cars had a picture of a monorail on the license plate tab - the only monorail we ever got.

My driveway is 1/4 of a mile long, so I don't think they would ever know anyways. Plus it's none of the government's business how much you drive. The more you drive, the more in gas taxes you pay, it's pretty simple. Besides cars aren't the ones tearing up the highways. Big heavy trucks are the ones tearing up the roads. If they raise the gas tax or toll interstate highways they wouldn't even have to do a mileage based tax.

[Sub-Urbanite]

Yes, it's far better to be charged for all the gas I'm burning idling in traffic than to be charged for how much I actually drive.

[US 41]

Yes, it's far better to be charged for all the gas I'm burning idling in traffic than to be charged for how much I actually drive.

Except you would still be paying taxes for the gas you are using. They aren't getting rid of the gas tax, they are just adding mileage taxes on top of the gas taxes you already pay.

[Rothman]

Yes, it's far better to be charged for all the gas I'm burning idling in traffic than to be charged for how much I actually drive.

Except you would still be paying taxes for the gas you are using. They aren't getting rid of the gas tax, they are just adding mileage taxes on top of the gas taxes you already pay.

Who's doing this?

[mcarling]

Yes, it's far better to be charged for all the gas I'm burning idling in traffic than to be charged for how much I actually drive.

Yes, it is because the gas tax isn't even high enough to pay for the externalities of the pollution caused by burning the fuel.

[roadfro]

If you're really trying to tax by road wear, you should ignore cars altogether and just tax trucks by weight.

I was just using "wear" for that example. Gas tax often isn't just about wear-and-tear maintenance, but also new construction.

Yes, it's far better to be charged for all the gas I'm burning idling in traffic than to be charged for how much I actually drive.

Except you would still be paying taxes for the gas you are using. They aren't getting rid of the gas tax, they are just adding mileage taxes on top of the gas taxes you already pay.

The pilots I'm aware of are studying whether to use a mileage tax to replace the state gas tax.

[US 41]

The pilots I'm aware of are studying whether to use a mileage tax to replace the state gas tax.

It would be a lot easier and better if they just raised the gas tax a few cents. So out of state drivers won't have to pay a state gas tax anymore and they'll just stick it to California residents? I'm sure that will go over really well.

Not sure how they could actually track how many miles you've drove. Anyone could just roll back the miles so it doesn't look like they've drove as much as they actually have. Plus its obvious the more you drive the more in gas taxes you pay. That's how its been forever and how it should stay. It's really none of the government's business how much you drive or where you drive.

[jeffandnicole]

The pilots I'm aware of are studying whether to use a mileage tax to replace the state gas tax.

It would be a lot easier and better if they just raised the gas tax a few cents. So out of state drivers won't have to pay a state gas tax anymore and they'll just stick it to California residents? I'm sure that will go over really well.

Not sure how they could actually track how many miles you've drove. Anyone could just roll back the miles so it doesn't look like they've drove as much as they actually have. Plus its obvious the more you drive the more in gas taxes you pay. That's how its been forever and how it should stay. It's really none of the government's business how much you drive or where you drive.

Just role back the mileage?  If that was the case, everyone would be doing that anyway whenever they traded in a vehicle or ended a lease in order to get the best value for their vehicle or to hide any over-mileage fees.

[mapman1071]

This would be hell if you rent a car or truck, or used a Zip Car in California, rental car/Zip Car and truck agency's that charge you per mile fees would be triple or higher including service taxes (sales tax, mileage fees, per mile tax, Toll transponder fee, ect....)