"New Jersey (US) Introduces Annual EV Fee, Punishing Owners Who Go Green" - Article

[Tooney]

Starting in July, New Jersey EV owners must pay an annual $250 road tax fee in an effort to offset the state's loss in fuel tax revenue. The new fee will increase by $10 each of the next four years until it reaches $290 in 2028. To make matters worse, New Jersey requires buyers and leases of all new vehicles to pay four years of registration fees upfront and the new EV fee will be included in that initial payment.
Therefore, beginning in July, any new electric vehicle purchased or leased in New Jersey will cost $1,060 more than it does today. That's considerably damaging since the higher initial cost of an electric vehicle is one of the biggest impediments to EV adoption.
. . .
Finally, it is important to address a common false narrative about EVs. There is a mistaken argument that because EVs are heavier than gas-powered vehicles of the same size, they cause more road damage—and should therefore be charged a higher fee.

EVs are in fact heavier than gas-powered vehicles, but the damage caused on roads is overwhelmingly caused by medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. Our review of studies has found that the real road damage is not caused by passenger vehicles and that damage kicks in at above 26,000 pounds. For comparison, one of the largest and heaviest passenger EVs, a GMC Hummer EV, weighs 9,000 pounds, while the popular Tesla Model Y weighs under 5,000 pounds. So, EVs are not the cause of this damage to roads any more than gas-fueled passenger vehicles. The damage caused by any passenger vehicle—electric or gas-powered—is negligible. The fact that EVs are heavier than gas-fueled passenger vehicles does not lead to more road damage, and EV drivers should not be required to pay for damages that they are not causing.
https://insideevs.com/features/714686/new-jersey-annual-ev-fee/

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[Perry]

Absolutely criminal. Like I said in another thread, I agree that weight is an issue for multiple reasons, but that applies to all vehicles, no matter the fuel type. Tax that specifically targets EVs is just utter nonsense.

 

[tbinmd]

Seems about right, NJ has had zero sales tax on EV’s. Maryland is looking at passing a road tax for EV’s . ICE vehicles pay the road tax at the pump for state and federal.

 

[jld1]

Well that sucks. It all felt a little too easy not having to pay taxes on it... so I'm not surprised they're inventing a way to recooperate the loss.

 

[MAPC]

If NJ doesn't have sales tax on new EV's, paying this 'tax' is still a complete bargain----sales tax on a $100K vehicle in my state is almost $8000.

Even on a $50K IONIQ or MachE it would be around $3500.

 

[Horizontally Opposed]

Completely ignoring the fact that NJ has no sales tax on EV, trying to turn that instead into “punishing”. Get real.

 

[kort]

$250 a year for annual state road use taxes is absurd.
ICE cars pay about .43 per gallon of gas in NJ state tax.
an ice car would need to purchase enough fuel for over 60k miles of driving to equal the $250 being arbitrarily being levied on EV owners.
A couple of other states have imposed similar absurdly high fees.
I am amazed that nobody has challenged these set fees. a person who drives 10-20k miles are year is being taxed at triple the rate the ICE driver is.

 

[Jhenson29]

ICE cars pay about .43 per gallon of gas in NJ state tax.
an ice car would need to purchase enough fuel for over 60k miles of driving to equal the $250 being

I think it’s closer to 14,500 miles (using 25mpg and $0.43 per gal).

 

[Hirschaj]

I think it’s closer to 14,500 miles (using 25mpg and $0.43 per gal).

Maths

 

[Fish Fingers]

Unsurprisingly, the UK Govt has also spotted this missed tax grab - and is introducing the following next April......by grouping zero emission cars in with polluting cars :

This measure will equalise the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) treatment of all zero emission and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles from April 2025. This change will apply to both new and existing alternatively fuelled vehicles (AFVs).

Zero emission cars first registered on or after 1 April 2017 will be liable to pay the lowest first year rate of VED which currently applies to vehicles with CO2 emissions 1 to 50g/km. From the second year of registration onwards, zero emission cars will move to the standard annual rate.

The Expensive Car Supplement exemption for EVs is due to end in 2025. New zero emission cars registered on or after 1 April 2025 will be liable to pay the expensive car supplement where eligible (currently those with a list price of or exceeding £40,000 are liable).

 

[FlyingPoint]

While this looks like an unjustified tax grab, it really is a fair solution to a growing problem.

NJ uses bonds to maintain, repair and improve its roads. The bonds are repaid using the tax imposed on gasoline and diesel. If fuel tax revenues fall below certain pre-determined thresholds, the fuel taxes must be increased to meet the bond indenture terms or a default occurs. This happened during Covid when driving was way down and fuel tax was increased 10 cents a gallon in 2021 or 2022. Its not about damage to roads caused by weight.
Since EV adoption is growing, it is clear that diminishing fuel taxes will be insufficient to cover bond payments, hence the EV fees.

 

[JIP1080]

Georgia has an upfront ad valorem tax paid at purchase for all passenger vehicles and then just a ~$20 yearly renewal fee for ICE. It is an additional $211/year for EV registration, which given our 29.1¢ gas tax is ~18k annual miles at 25mpg (used for consistency with previous posts, please correct the math if I'm off here...). The amount is annually adjusted based on average fuel economy. Not great for someone who does less than 5k/yr. But I'm less worried about the relatively few dollars difference with the EV fee. Where I get frustrated is that we also last summer got hit with a 26¢/11kWh public charging tax (grace period until the end of 2025 for implementation). The logic put forth was that both fees were needed because most charging happens at home and thus bypasses the public charging tax. If it had started with a charging tax and moved to just the registration fee I think it would have made some sense. There was no justification worth typing as to why the charging tax was needed in addition to the yearly fee though. I struggle with the situation when it results in double taxation when using public charging. Maybe another GA forum member can point to the piece I'm missing, but I can't find anything in HB170 (original EV registration fee bill from 2015) or in Senate Bill 146 that indicates this isn't ultimately double taxation.
There is an expectation the issue will be revisited before the new tax takes effect, but I'm not holding my breath for a reasonable outcome.

 

[charliemathilde]

You can tell it’s bullshit because they don’t just tax vehicles based on weight. They’re specifically exempting SUVs and trucks.

so, yeah, punishing.

 

[ciaranob]

We’re already paying an extra $200+ in TX too - I forget the exact no.s but based off gas/road taxes per mile driven (averages) EV owners I believe are paying 3-4 times what ICE vehicles pay.

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