Owners of Electric Cars May Have to Pay Federal Fee

Owners of electric vehicles might soon be writing a new annual check to Washington. A bipartisan House bill would add a nationwide fee of $130 a year for fully electric cars and $35 for plug-in hybrids, reports the New York Times. The fee would begin in October 2026 and tick up $5 annually until it hits a cap of $150, per USA Today. The idea is to make sure EV owners chip in for road repairs as drivers of regular vehicles do through gasoline and diesel taxes. The federal fee would be on top of any fee charged by states.

The measure has the support of the top Republican on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Sam Graves, as well as the top Democrat, Rick Larsen. Both maintain it's fair, though auto and environmental groups counter that most drivers pay far less in federal fuel taxes—an estimated $73 to $89 a year—and that a flat fee punishes people who drive less and are trying to dodge high gas prices. The measure's bipartisan support boosts its odds in the House, though its fate is less certain in the Senate.