NOMINATING COMMITTEES OF CANDIDATES FOR SCHOOLS. FUNDING FOR NEW MEXICO’S CRUMBLING ROADS JUST GOT A BOOST, WITH $1.5 BILLION IN BONDS. THE GOVERNOR SIGNED IT INTO LAW TODAY. JASON MCNABB EXPLAINS HOW IT AFFECTS OWNERS OF ELECTRIC CARS AND HYBRIDS. HEAT IS ONE OF MANY NEW MEXICANS WHO BOUGHT AN ELECTRIC CAR TO SAVE MONEY BY NOT HAVING TO BUY GAS, THE REASON THAT WE BUY ELECTRIC CARS IS TO MAKE EVERYTHING CHEAPER. HE AND OTHER EV DRIVERS ARE NOT HAPPY ABOUT A $70 SURCHARGE FOR REGISTERING ELECTRIC OR HYBRID CAR TO HELP PAY FOR $1.5 BILLION IN ROAD BONDS. IT’S SLATED TO INCREASE TO $90 BY 2029, SO THEY’RE GOING TO START CHARGING AND GIVING FEES. I GUESS THAT’S KIND OF ANNOYING BECAUSE WHY ARE THEY GIVING US MORE OF A PENALTY WHEN WE’RE KIND OF DOING SOMETHING THAT’S GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT? MOST OF MNDOT’S FUNDING COMES FROM THE GAS TAX, AN AMOUNT YOU PAY EVERY TIME YOU FILL UP YOUR CAR. THAT AMOUNT HASN’T BEEN RAISED IN THREE DECADES, AND THE FUNDING HASN’T CAUGHT UP WITH THE RATE THAT ROADS ARE DECAYING. EV OWNERS DON’T PAY FOR GAS, AND HYBRID OWNERS PAY A LOT LESS THAN THE AVERAGE CAR OWNER. THE SURCHARGE AIMS TO RECOUP TAX DOLLARS THAT SIMPLY AREN’T BEING REPLENISHED THE WAY THEY USED TO. IT’S A COMPROMISE. IT’S A MIXED BAG, BUT IT IS WHERE WE ARE WITH THIS TRANSPORTATION ISSUE. PAUL GUESSING OF THE TAXPAYER WATCH GROUP RIO GRANDE FOUNDATION SAYS THE SURCHARGE IS JUSTIFIED AND THINKS IT SHOULD BE EVEN HIGHER. I THINK $90 IS ON THE LOW SIDE, BUT IT’S BETTER THAN NOTHING. SO AGAIN, IT’S A COMPROMISE. IT’S A MIXED BAG, BUT IT IS WHERE WE ARE WITH THIS TRANSPORTATION ISSUE. REGISTRATION FEES WILL ALSO INCREASE BY 25%. TH
New Mexico drivers face increased fees to fund road improvements
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a $1.5 billion bond package into law to fund road projects, leading to increased vehicle registration fees and surcharges for electric and hybrid cars.
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a $1.5 billion bond package into law on Thursday to provide funding for New Mexico’s Department of Transportation, resulting in increased vehicle registration fees and surcharges for electric and hybrid cars.”If you don’t keep these roads maintained and safe and modernized, the people who pay are the drivers and everyday New Mexicans,” Lujan Grisham said. The funding package will immediately get several major road projects underway and create over 13,000 jobs during the lifetime of the bonds. However, they have to be paid for somehow, and most of the New Mexico Department of Transportation’s funding comes from the gas tax, which has not been raised in three decades.With the rate staying the same, the state is funding these bonds by increasing vehicle registration fees by 25 percent and adding a $70 surcharge for registering an electric vehicle or hybrid, which will increase to $90 by 2029. This is because those drivers are buying little or no gas, meaning they’re not contributing to the gas tax fund.Owners of electric cars expressed dissatisfaction with the new fees. “The reason that we buy electric cars is to make everything cheaper, I mean now that we’re going to have to pay that, what’s really the point of having an electric car,” one owner said. Another added, “If they’re going to start charging and giving fees, I guess that’s annoying because why are they giving us more of a penalty when we’re doing something that’s good for the environment.”Paul Gessing of the taxpayer watch group Rio Grande Foundation said the surcharge is justified and thinks it should be even higher. “I think $90 is on the low side, but it’s better than nothing. So again, it’s a compromise. It’s a mixed bag, but it is where we are with this transportation issue,” Gessing said.Registration fees for everyone will increase starting on July 1, and the surcharges will go into effect January 1 of next year.
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a $1.5 billion bond package into law on Thursday to provide funding for New Mexico’s Department of Transportation, resulting in increased vehicle registration fees and surcharges for electric and hybrid cars.
“If you don’t keep these roads maintained and safe and modernized, the people who pay are the drivers and everyday New Mexicans,” Lujan Grisham said. The funding package will immediately get several major road projects underway and create over 13,000 jobs during the lifetime of the bonds. However, they have to be paid for somehow, and most of the New Mexico Department of Transportation’s funding comes from the gas tax, which has not been raised in three decades.
With the rate staying the same, the state is funding these bonds by increasing vehicle registration fees by 25 percent and adding a $70 surcharge for registering an electric vehicle or hybrid, which will increase to $90 by 2029. This is because those drivers are buying little or no gas, meaning they’re not contributing to the gas tax fund.
Owners of electric cars expressed dissatisfaction with the new fees. “The reason that we buy electric cars is to make everything cheaper, I mean now that we’re going to have to pay that, what’s really the point of having an electric car,” one owner said. Another added, “If they’re going to start charging and giving fees, I guess that’s annoying because why are they giving us more of a penalty when we’re doing something that’s good for the environment.”
Paul Gessing of the taxpayer watch group Rio Grande Foundation said the surcharge is justified and thinks it should be even higher. “I think $90 is on the low side, but it’s better than nothing. So again, it’s a compromise. It’s a mixed bag, but it is where we are with this transportation issue,” Gessing said.
Registration fees for everyone will increase starting on July 1, and the surcharges will go into effect January 1 of next year.
