Electric cars: Owners pay fair share

Re: “State to test drive charging drivers by the mile,” (TNT, 12/13).

Post-reality America: Facts are denied if one has already made up their mind.

The state project manager quoted in this article says that electric vehicles “don’t contribute anything to the road tax.”

Fact: “RCW 46.17.323 Electric vehicle registration renewal fees - (3)(a) “The fee [$150.00] under this section is imposed to provide funds to mitigate the impact of vehicles on state roads & highways ... fees must be used for highway purposes ...”

I drive a Nissan Leaf, an all-electric vehicle, almost 8,000 miles per year. I’ll pay $150 in annual license renewal for “road use tax.”

If I drove the Versa, Nissan’s gas-powered equivalent car, it would get 34 miles per gallon for the same 8,000 miles, and I would pay road tax of $116 per year (paid at $0.494 per gallon at the pump).

The Leaf is 100-percent electric, powered by American electrons. I am happy to pay more than my share of road tax if it results in cleaner air and less dependance on dirty fossil fuels from anywhere in the world.

This story was originally published December 29, 2016 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Electric cars: Owners pay fair share."