Hagen Brothers farms,Goodrich ND | Got to remember that full hybrids, plug in hybrids and full electric cars are very different animals, and the rules need to be different for all to fairly tax them.
1 The full hybrid does not plug in at any time, it uses the gasoline engine to charge it's battery, so pays gas tax on every mile it travels, just like any conventional car.
2 The plug in hybrid has a larger battery than a full hybrid, which can be charged by plugging it in or it can be charged by the onboard gas engine.
The plug in hybrid is the one that is hard to tax fairly.
A plug in hybrid like a Chevy volt, can run about 30 miles on pure electric before it's big hybrid battery goes flat and it needs to switch on the gas engine, where it can go another 400 miles on a tank of gas.
The problem with fairly taxing a plug in hybrid like a Volt, is that an owner that makes only short trips will do it on plug in electric power only and pay no gas tax. Another fellow with the exact same car who makes 200 mile trips daily, will go 30 miles on battery power alone and never pay any gas tax on that, but will have to continue on for the next 170 miles on the gas engine and pay tax on that gas.
How do you fairly tax those two drivers ?? Possibly some sceme to meter and tax the electricity he uses to charge the battery ???
The full electric car should be easier, all power to their battery is plug in power , they have no onboard gas engine. Possibly tax them by the miles driven ??
Edited by Jon Hagen 3/3/2012 15:44
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Will machines of the future..
