They Want To Tax Americans For Traveling

(JustPatriots.com)- The Washington State Transportation Commission recommended a new tax structure in a report sent to Gov. Jay Inslee and the Legislature. The commission’s concern is the declining gasoline tax revenues.

The unintended consequences of the left’s policies rear their ugly head once more.

According to recent research by The Center Square, the income from fuel taxes is expected to decrease by $600 million, or around $21.4 million per year, over the next 28 years.

The WSTC advises continuing an experimental program started in 2012 and looks at the sustainability of a per-mile tax on all miles traveled by Evergreen State residents, or a “gasless gas tax,” if you will.

The need to find creative sources of income for the Washington State Department of Transportation to maintain Washington’s roads is caused by better engine efficiency and the adoption of electric and hybrid cars.

The research claims that RUC, or “Road Usage Charge,” can finance Washington’s transportation requirements while keeping the user-pay concept formerly expressed by fuel taxes as an alternative to greater fuel and vehicle fees.

The paper acknowledges that many choices still need to be taken, “including how to measure and report distance traveled in a way that safeguards privacy, delivers user convenience, and is relatively cost-effective to gather.”

Privacy concerns are a big issue.

In other words, the plan would include a private third-party firm gathering data from your car in real-time on behalf of Washington State.

The first RUC fee would be 2.5 cents per mile traveled in Washington State on government-maintained roads and would call for yearly odometer readings if the report’s recommendations are implemented.

The privacy implications of odometer readings are not yet understood, nor is it known how they will be implemented or enforced.

The WSTC and DOL may need to work with other states, countries, and manufacturers to pursue long-term solutions for mileage reporting and payment across borders, according to the report’s odometer regime.