State transportation departments have begun citing threats to public safety as their budgets experience shortfalls in funding. According to a report on Stateline.org, many states are prioritizing new projects over basic maintenance needs.
Although conventional wisdom holds that gas tax revenue will drop as EVs grow in popularity, the report says this is not yet happening. Rather, states such as Oregon are moving money from road maintenance to new highway construction.
The article highlights several states that are working to shift the burden of funding transportation products from only gas tax revenue. Minnesota and Colorado, for example, have imposed delivery fees that apply to retailers such as Amazon.
States also are beginning to enact fees at electric vehicle charging stations, according to the report. Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Montana, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Utah all tax electricity consumed at public charging stations, citing the National Conference of State Legislatures.
