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Pay-by-mile vs. gas tax: Commission recommends road usage charge to Legislature

The transportation commission reviewed the findings of its final report and recommended the Legislature take up a proposal to replace the gas tax.

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington State Transportation Commission will send their list of recommendations to the Legislature on a proposal to replace the gas tax with a pay-per-mile system.

Some of the recommendations discussed at Tuesday's meeting include taking a slow and gradual approach to introducing a Road Usage Charge (RUC), implement privacy protection measures specific to an RUC program, restrict RUC revenues to highway-related expenditures, assess potential equity impacts of RUC on communities of color and low-income, rural communities. 

Any changes to the current system are likely years away. 

"Under the gas tax, we pay by the mile already," said Reema Griffith, the commission's executive director. "We don't think of it that way." 

Under the recommendation made Tuesday, Griffith said drivers who end up paying the road usage charge would qualify for tax rebates for gas taxes paid.

She also said participants would be able to choose the method their miles are tracked.

Some might choose to use a GPS tracker but others could chose to self-report or pay in advance. Griffith said. 

The state began looking at pay-by-mile, also known RUC for Road Use Charges, in 2012.

The latest round of research includes results of a 2,000 driver/taxpayer study of people around the state. In it, those who conducted the study found that 68% of drivers preferred a pay-by-mile system and 19% wanted to stick with the gas tax.

The study simulated the use of various pay-by-mile systems, but did not employ the use of real dollars. Pay-by-mile options involve using a plug that goes into the on-board diagnostic port, typically located under the steering wheel portion of the dashboard, or by phone apps.

RELATED: Deep Dive: Where does your gas tax money go?

RELATED: Would you rather pay-by-mile instead of a Washington gas tax?

Of the near dozen of citizens who testified at the hearing, the majority were opposed to the idea of charging drivers per mile.

"This road usage charge will hurt all those who are on fixed incomes, like me," said Rita Caywood, a King County resident.

"This is not a replacement tax. This is an additional tax," said Tim Eyman, a longtime anti-tax initiative sponsor and a recent candidate for governor.

He said he does not believe the government's plan to refund gas tax payers who pay road usage fees.

"You can't trust them," said Eyman.

The current Washington state gas tax per gallon is 49.4 cents. That’s well over the federal excise tax of 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon for diesel fuel. 

With more electric vehicles and hybrids on the roads, the state is concerned the gas tax eventually won’t be enough to keep building and maintaining roads and bridges in the future.

Washington state recently announced hybrid and electric car owners will start paying an annual $75 car tab fee to finance electric car charging stations.

Other states in the west are moving in the pay-by-mile direction, at least on a voluntary or limited basis. Oregon’s OReGO system is voluntary and charges 1.7 cents per mile. What drivers pay in gas tax is credited back to their accounts. There’s an app for that. 

On January 1, 2020, Utah is expected to implement a pay-by-mile option focused on electrics and hybrids, which would give drivers the option of paying by mile, or paying a flat upfront fee.

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