COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Ohio lawmakers are looking to eliminate an extra registration fee that is charged to those registering a hybrid vehicle in the state.
House Bill 389 was introduced by Rep. Joseph Miller (D-Amherst) and Rep. David Thomas (R-Jefferson). More than a dozen other lawmakers also signed on to the bill, including Rep. Anita Somani (D-Dublin), Rep. Dontavius Jarrells (D-Columbus), Rep. Meredith Lawson-Rowe (D-Reynoldsburg), and Rep. Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus).
Schools no longer able to stop groups like LifeWise from sending items back with kidsCurrently, drivers who register a hybrid vehicle in Ohio must pay an additional $100 registration fee on top of the standard registration fees.
"This is a taxpayer fairness idea," Thomas said in a statement to NBC4. "We should be treating folks as fairly as possible, just because you have a hybrid or plug-in doesn't mean you use less gas and I don't think you should pay much higher fees for it."
The bill does not eliminate the additional fees for plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles, with fees of $150 and $200, respectively.
Most states have implemented additional registration fees for hybrid and electric vehicles since drivers of those cars require less fuel -- or none at all -- and therefore don't pay as much, if anything, in fuel taxes to fund road maintenance.
Rainbow crosswalk near Ohio State restored after vandalism incidentAccording to the National Conference of State Legislatures, as of July, at least 41 states charge additional fees for electric vehicles and more than two dozen states also charge additional fees for hybrids.
Critics argue that the fees often charged for hybrid and electric vehicles are disproportionately high compared to what drivers would pay in fuel tax for driving the same amount of miles in a gas car.
"This is an excessive tax, making Ohio taxes among the highest in the nation and offers little benefit to Ohio," Clean Fuels Ohio Board President Tom Bullock said in a statement. "Clean Fuels Ohio agrees that electric vehicle owners should pay their fair share of road taxes, but $200 isn't fair: it's excessive, collected up-front, and one-size-fits all, meaning vehicles that drive lower mileage are charged as if they've driven much further. And no credit is given for taxes already paid on electricity. A sticker fee of $50 would be much closer to a fair amount."
Ohio's fuel tax (excluding the federal fuel tax) is 38.5 cents per gallon. Someone driving 12,000 miles in a year at 30 miles per gallon would pay about $154 in state fuel tax. An EV driver traveling that same 12,000 miles in a year would pay the $200 additional registration fee.
The flat $200 annual registration fee for electric vehicles can be cheaper than the fuel tax for high-mileage drivers or when compared to drivers in older, less efficient gas cars. A less efficient car traveling 18,000 miles at 25 miles per gallon would pay about $277 in fuel tax, where an EV driver traveling that same distance would still only pay $200.
Adam Coy, ex-officer convicted of killing Andre Hill, appeals verdictThat has prompted states to consider adding mileage-based fees so drivers who use the roads more will pay more, according to the NCSL.
The additional registration fees for hybrid vehicles are generally viewed as more unfair than the fees charged to electric vehicles. Because hybrid vehicles still primarily use fuel and the smaller battery is not charged from an external source, drivers still end up paying a fuel tax on top of the additional registration fee.
"The current fee structure is inequitable and unfair," Miller said in a statement to NBC4. "Maintaining Ohio's roads is a top priority for all, but the mechanism in which we do it places an undue burden on those with a non-plug-in hybrid vehicle."
Someone with a hybrid vehicle getting 40 miles per gallon would pay about $115 in fuel tax for 12,000 miles, plus the additional $100 fee lawmakers are trying to eliminate, for a total of $215. A plug-in hybrid with similar efficiency would cost the same $115 in fuel tax plus the $150 additional registration fee -- which HB 389, as written, does not eliminate -- costing a total of $265.
"Although they may improve fuel economy, the gas tax combined with the elevated registration fee puts an undue and unfair burden on the owners of these vehicles," Miller said. "This bill is about leveling the playing field and ensuring an equitable fee structure."
Judge denies Columbus Zoo request to temporarily block township from taxing admissionsClean Fuels Ohio has previously called on the state to charge fees of $25 for plug-in hybrids and $50 for electric vehicles.
"This would represent an important symbolic precedent of ensuring EV owners paid road taxes," Clean Fuels Ohio wrote in an undated two-page fact sheet shared with NBC4. "In our view, this level would not unduly harm the fledgling EV market, important to encourage for Ohio’s consumers and economy."
Miller was a co-sponsor of House Bill 546 in 2020 that would have cut the additional registration fee in half, but that bill never made it out of committee.
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