A North Dakota bill to raise road use fees for electric vehicles (EVs), plug-in hybrids and electric motorcycles in the state is awaiting a vote in the state Senate, and must pass by the end of the session on May 9, to take effect this year.
The legislation would raise EV road use fees from $120 to $150, the hybrid vehicle road use fee from $50 to $60, and the electric motorcycle road use fee from $20 to $25. The state government collects such fees at the start of each yearly registration period.
“The need for the bill is to provide funding for ongoing road maintenance,” state Republican Rep. Jared Hagert, the bill’s sponsor, told Autobody News in an email.
The bill also proposes to raise the state gas tax from 23 cents to 26 cents per gallon, putting the extra money into a newly created “city, county and township road fund.” Money in that fund would be distributed to non-oil-producing counties based on a needs assessment, and used to fund road infrastructure.
“Although technically a tax increase, I look at it as a use fee since those that pay the tax are the ones using the infrastructure provided,” Hagert wrote.
The provisions would take effect June 30.
As of August 2024, nearly three dozen states had approved gas tax increases and additional EV fees specifically for EV owners over the preceding decade to offset revenue shortages, according to Politico.
North Dakota’s bill is similar to a measure that took effect April 1 in Pennsylvania, requiring EV and hybrid owners in that state to pay an annual road-user charge to help with road maintenance. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro signed that bill into law last year.
In that state, EV owners obtaining a one-year registration now pay a $200 road-use fee, while EV owners with a two-year registration pay a $400 road-use fee. In 2026, those fees will increase to $250 and $450, respectively.
As reported by Autobody News, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy in July 2024 signed into law a bill to raise EV taxes from zero to 6.6%, starting July 1, 2025.
Car buyers in New Jersey hadn’t paid sales taxes on fully electric vehicles since 2004. The was introduced as the state had been working to balance the state budget through collecting more revenue on automotive sales and usage.
In addition to New Jersey, California, Washington state, West Virginia and Mississippi are among the nearly 40 states that charge some kind of yearly fee for EVs or hybrids.
As for the North Dakota legislation, if the Senate passes it in its current form, it would then go to the House for that chamber to approve or reject the Senate amendments.
If selected, it “would have its own vote on the floor of the Senate,” Hagert wrote.
If the House does not concur with the legislation, the bill could simply languish, be struck down in a floor vote, or absorb new amendments.
If the last of those three options happens, House and Senate legislators would need to convene a conference committee to draft a version of the bill that could pass both chambers.
Brian Bradley