Some Republicans are trying to double down on getting rid of ANYTHING that might be called conservation….
The chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee unveiled legislation Tuesday to end the $7,500 tax incentive for electric vehicles.
The yet-unnumbered bill comes as a United Nations report on climate change, released over the weekend, outlined dire consequences for the planet in the absence of global action to drastically reduce carbon output over the next decade.
The legislation from Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., would also impose “a federal highway user fee on alternative fuel vehicles,” which would then go into the Highway Trust Fund, according to a committee summary. The fee, based on typical fuel taxes paid for similar gas-powered vehicles, would be collected with the vehicle owner’s federal tax return….
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Efforts to fix the trust fund have largely focused on raising fuel taxes, though some have also proposed transitioning to a different model, including one based on vehicle-miles-traveled. Retiring House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster, R-Pa., wrote a bill earlier this year that would raise fuel taxes by 20 to 25 cents per gallon before eliminating fuel taxes in 2028.
Citing reports from the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, the committee estimated that eliminating the tax credit would save an estimated $20 billion over the next decade. The additional highway fees could add “billions” to the trust fund, the committee said.
House Republicans attempted last year to remove the tax credit as part of its tax overhaul measure, but were rebuked by the Senate, which kept the provisions out of the enacted bill. The Ways and Means Committee estimated removing the tax credit could result in cost savings of $4 billion over the next decade.
The effort is unlikely to gain much Democratic support, and it may even meet divided support among Republicans…