Governor Greg Abbott signs law requiring new fees for electric vehicle owners in Texas

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) — Electric vehicle owners in Texas will pay more to register their rides.

A bill signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott requires new electric vehicle owners to pay 400-dollars to register their vehicles.

Current owners will pay 200-dollars to renew their registration.

The new fees are intended to replace the amount EV owners aren’t paying in gasoline taxes.

Texas collects about three billion a year in gasoline taxes from motorists. That money, which equals out to about 20 cents per gallon of gas, is the main source of funding for roadwork in the state.

A report by the Dallas Morning News states that gas fueled vehicle owners in Texas pay an average of $130 a year in state gas taxes. There are currently 200,000 electric vehicles in Texas and more than 30,000 were sold this year.

The new fees are on top of other standard registration fees. It’s expected they will generate about $38 million for the state highway fund.

They take effect September 1.

 

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