6 ms·

Could you please elaborate on: > I'm actually being taxed for owning an EV.

by ranit 6mo ago

__oh_es 6mo ago
Some countries charge a road tax or annual vehicle tax, and ev’s are often except as a green incentive
- phil21 6mo ago
  and some places charge a higher annual fee for EVs due to roads being largely funded by gas taxes. Seems totally fair to me so long as the averages largely line up for both vehicle types.
QGQBGdeZREunxLe 6mo ago
https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/taxes-licensing-and-reporting/provincial-taxes-policies-and-bulletins/fuel-tax/road-use-charge-on-electric-vehicles https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/taxes-licensing-and-rep...
jbm 6mo ago
Alberta is imposing a charge on EV registrations, and they increased it again this year. At some point I'm hoping courts curtail their attempt at imposing gas cars but given how Canadian courts are hamstrung at obvious human rights issues in places like Quebec, I doubt they will do anything about Alberta either.
- zetanor 6mo ago
  >Canadian courts are hamstrung at obvious human rights issues Huh?
- b112 6mo ago
  Paying the fair share for road maintenance isn't a human rights issue.
  - dotancohen 6mo ago
    Reducing carbon emissions most certainly is a human rights issue. I absolutely can not breathe when I go to large cities. I live in a village, drive an electric, and charge it from rooftop solar.
    - b112 6mo ago
      You actually can breath in "large cities", unless you have a pre-existing health condition. Otherwise, all the people in those "large cities" would already be dead, and they'd cease being "large cities". Or at least, populated ones. "Carbon emissions" is a human rights issue, just as 1000 other things are. Whether "reducing" carbon emissions is determined to be a right is not black and white as of yet. Regardless, leveling a road tax has nothing to do with that. It is merely a tax to be inline with what everyone else pays. You may as well say you have a right to a free electric car too, or maybe a right to get 50% off. You do realise the roads have to be maintained, yes? And that's what the tax on gas is for, yes? I assure you, endless environmentalists which don't drive anything at all, and see the construction of roads as an annoyance, would be upset at the idea of cars, any type of car, electric or otherwise, as bad. And are very upset at any sort of car being subsidized to increase adoption. But of course, because you own an electric car, it's now a human rights issue that you get to pay less. Right?
      - ThePowerOfFuet 6mo ago
        >You actually can breath in "large cities", unless you have a pre-existing health condition. Did you know that some people have health conditions?
        deleted 6mo ago
        [deleted]
      - dotancohen 6mo ago
        I may have exaggerated. In large cities the air is significantly less comfortable to breathe. > because you own an electric car, it's now a human rights issue that you get to pay less. Right? No, why would you think that? It is only fair that electric car users, myself included, pay for the proportional damage and wear to the roads. Now tell me why the polluting carbon-burning vehicles don't have a separate tax to repair the damage they do to the environment, e.g. climate change? How much would that tax cost?
jjmarr 6mo ago
There's a special excise tax on gasoline for highway and road maintenance. EVs don't pay that tax because they use normal electricity. So Alberta introduced a $200 EV fee to match the average revenue from the excise tax. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-electric-vehicle-tax-1.7132365 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-electric-veh...
- bigstrat2003 6mo ago
  It sounds like the more accurate framing, then, is "I'm not getting a tax break for having an EV". Which is disappointing sure, but not outrageous either.
  - RevEng 6mo ago
    That's the framing but it's also misleading. We are being charged more than a typical ICE driver would pay in gasoline tax. It's also listed as being for road maintenance, but in fact it goes into the general revenue, so it has nothing to do with road maintenance.
    - b112 6mo ago
      The first part is untrue: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47475419 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47475419 The second is not necessarily true.

Could you please elaborate on: > I'm actually being taxed for owning an EV.

by ranit 6mo ago

Could you please elaborate on: > I'm actually being taxed for owning an EV.

__oh_es 6mo ago

Some countries charge a road tax or annual vehicle tax, and ev’s are often except as a green incentive

phil21 6mo ago
and some places charge a higher annual fee for EVs due to roads being largely funded by gas taxes. Seems totally fair to me so long as the averages largely line up for both vehicle types.

QGQBGdeZREunxLe 6mo ago

https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/taxes-licensing-and-reporting/provincial-taxes-policies-and-bulletins/fuel-tax/road-use-charge-on-electric-vehicles https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/taxes-licensing-and-rep...

jbm 6mo ago

Alberta is imposing a charge on EV registrations, and they increased it again this year. At some point I'm hoping courts curtail their attempt at imposing gas cars but given how Canadian courts are hamstrung at obvious human rights issues in places like Quebec, I doubt they will do anything about Alberta either.

zetanor 6mo ago
>Canadian courts are hamstrung at obvious human rights issues Huh?
b112 6mo ago
Paying the fair share for road maintenance isn't a human rights issue.
- dotancohen 6mo ago
  Reducing carbon emissions most certainly is a human rights issue. I absolutely can not breathe when I go to large cities. I live in a village, drive an electric, and charge it from rooftop solar.
  - b112 6mo ago
    You actually can breath in "large cities", unless you have a pre-existing health condition. Otherwise, all the people in those "large cities" would already be dead, and they'd cease being "large cities". Or at least, populated ones. "Carbon emissions" is a human rights issue, just as 1000 other things are. Whether "reducing" carbon emissions is determined to be a right is not black and white as of yet. Regardless, leveling a road tax has nothing to do with that. It is merely a tax to be inline with what everyone else pays. You may as well say you have a right to a free electric car too, or maybe a right to get 50% off. You do realise the roads have to be maintained, yes? And that's what the tax on gas is for, yes? I assure you, endless environmentalists which don't drive anything at all, and see the construction of roads as an annoyance, would be upset at the idea of cars, any type of car, electric or otherwise, as bad. And are very upset at any sort of car being subsidized to increase adoption. But of course, because you own an electric car, it's now a human rights issue that you get to pay less. Right?
    - ThePowerOfFuet 6mo ago
      >You actually can breath in "large cities", unless you have a pre-existing health condition. Did you know that some people have health conditions?
      - deleted 6mo ago
        [deleted]
    - dotancohen 6mo ago
      I may have exaggerated. In large cities the air is significantly less comfortable to breathe. > because you own an electric car, it's now a human rights issue that you get to pay less. Right? No, why would you think that? It is only fair that electric car users, myself included, pay for the proportional damage and wear to the roads. Now tell me why the polluting carbon-burning vehicles don't have a separate tax to repair the damage they do to the environment, e.g. climate change? How much would that tax cost?

jjmarr 6mo ago

There's a special excise tax on gasoline for highway and road maintenance. EVs don't pay that tax because they use normal electricity. So Alberta introduced a $200 EV fee to match the average revenue from the excise tax. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-electric-vehicle-tax-1.7132365 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-electric-veh...

bigstrat2003 6mo ago
It sounds like the more accurate framing, then, is "I'm not getting a tax break for having an EV". Which is disappointing sure, but not outrageous either.
- RevEng 6mo ago
  That's the framing but it's also misleading. We are being charged more than a typical ICE driver would pay in gasoline tax. It's also listed as being for road maintenance, but in fact it goes into the general revenue, so it has nothing to do with road maintenance.
  - b112 6mo ago
    The first part is untrue: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47475419 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47475419 The second is not necessarily true.