EV mileage fee advances
A Vermont House proposal to charge electric vehicles a mileage‑based fee is advancing, introducing a new revenue approach as the state shifts toward cleaner transportation. The measure raises equity questions about who bears the costs of road funding as EV adoption grows. (x.com)
H.944 — the transportation-policy bill that includes the mileage-based user fee for battery electric vehicles — cleared the House Transportation and Ways and Means committees this week and was slated for House floor consideration the week of March 23, 2026. (vtdigger.org) The latest draft sets the mileage-based user fee at $0.014 per mile for BEVs, requires an odometer reading at each vehicle’s annual inspection, and directs the DMV to calculate and bill owners or lessees for the miles driven. (legislature.vermont.gov) The proposal would replace the $89 flat EV registration surcharge adopted in 2024 and ties the first billable inspection period to inspections after Jan. 1, 2027, meaning the state would not begin collecting revenue until 2028. (legislature.vermont.gov) Legislative fiscal estimates put revenue from the new fee between about $350,000 and $1 million in fiscal 2028 and roughly $2.5 million the following year, while the Joint Fiscal Office’s modeling assumes the average Vermont EV driver would pay about $154 annually based on 11,000 miles per year. (evshift.com) House amendments added a 1% tax on the total cost of fully electric vehicle rentals and left plug‑in hybrid vehicle fees unchanged, and the 1.4¢‑per‑mile rate was informed by a UVM Transportation Research Center rate‑setting study prepared for VTrans. (evshift.com) VTrans and legislative staff have flagged implementation issues — including privacy safeguards for mileage data, cross‑border travel accounting, and potential impacts on federal grant eligibility — and the Agency has been developing statutory language and an implementation plan since 2023. (citizenportal.ai)
