Super Eco

Photo credit: Anatoli Axelrod, flickr

Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick has been promoting an upcoming still-to-be-unveiled transportation plan. One piece of that plan, however, may already have been revealed. Patrick said he is considering a "Hummer Tax"—a registration tax specific to cars that get poor gas mileage.

It seemed a year or two ago that this type of proposal would not be necessary. After all, gas prices were inching toward four dollars a gallon and it was becoming a bit more difficult to fill up the Range Rovers and Escalades. Now that gas prices have dipped back to more reasonable two dollar levels, we may see an uptick in the purchase of large gas-guzzling vehicles. Environmental groups have praised the governor's proposal—higher taxes should logically encourage consumers to buy more fuel-efficient cars. The tax would likely go on a sliding scale, with energy-efficient cars earning benefits and tax breaks, and less efficient vehicles subject to higher penalties.

Let me play devil's advocate for a moment. Should someone who owns a landscaping business be forced to pay a higher tax on the truck he needs to transport his equipment? I don't have an answer, I'm just throwing it out there. It's a bit of a tricky situation. The federal government has a similar law in place, but SUVs and trucks are exempt, and the law mainly focuses on high-performance sports cars. Kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?

Citizens of Massachusetts already seem to be in favor of raising the tax on gas rather than the toll road charges, so it would be seem that a Hummer Tax is the next natural step. Still, it's best to consider all the effects of such a choice. It's not the best time to start messing with someone's livelihood.