trucking

House Proposes EV Registration Fees to Shore Up Highway Trust Fund

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee introduced legislation that would establish the first new Highway Trust Fund revenue stream in over 30 years through annual registration fees on electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Under the BUILD America 250 Act, EV owners would pay $100 annually while plug-in hybrid owners would pay $40. The measure addresses a long-standing shortfall caused by EVs bypassing the federal gas tax of $0.184 per gallon. Commercial motor vehicles and covered farm vehicles are explicitly exempted from the fees, which would be collected during standard state registration renewals. The legislation includes an inflationary escalator mechanism. Previous attempts to implement similar charges have failed to advance through Congress. These included a $250 annual fee for EVs and $100 fee for hybrids in the One Big Beautiful Bill, making this the latest effort to diversify highway funding sources.