The US state of Texas has imposed a tax of 200 dollars a year on electric car drivers to compensate for the shortfall in the proceeds of the tax on fuel sales in the state due to the spread of electric cars.
The new tax, which took effect at the beginning of this month, is an obstacle to efforts to persuade residents of the state to use low-emission cars in a state with very few electric cars.
The Texas state parliament approved the new tax law earlier this year, as well as obliging owners of electric cars to pay a fee of 400 dollars equivalent to two years of tax when registering a car or renewing its license.
According to the National Conference of state legislatures of the United States, Texas is the latest among the 33 US states to impose fees of up to 225 dollars a year on owners of electric cars.
In contrast, electric cars in many European countries and parts of Canada are exempt from fuel taxes to encourage the acquisition of these environmentally friendly cars, despite their higher price than conventional cars powered by internal combustion engines.
According to the Texas Tribune News website, the number of electric cars in the oil-rich state increased sharply from 8,397 cars in 2016 to 105,807 cars in .2022 and yet these cars still account for less than 1 percent of the total number of registered cars in the state.
State officials say the new tax law was imposed because electric car drivers do not pay a “fair share” of the money used to finance road construction and repair projects across the state.
