Value-based tax unfair

A Dec. 23 editorial, “Look beyond gas tax for funding of state’s roads,” included the statement, “In a not so distant past, Washington charged for vehicle tabs based on value. Crazy idea?” Yes, crazy and patently unfair.

Pickup trucks cost from $30,000 to $50,000, yet there is no difference in the cost of road repairs and maintenance related to the travel of that vehicle on Washington roads. There is no relationship between the cost of service and the value-based tax that would be applied to the vehicle. Definitely unfair.

A motor home costs well over $100,000. Yet, many owners drive them about 4,000 miles per year, mostly in other states; snowbirds, for example. Perhaps 10 percent of these miles are in Washington. Under the value-based tax approach, the owner would pay about four times what the owner of a car would pay, but the motor home would travel about 4 percent of the distance, compared to the car. Definitely unfair.

Paying for roads based on vehicle value has no relationship to the cost to provide roads for that vehicle. Funding of roads should be based on the cost of service. Gas taxes or mileage charges provide a more equitable funding approach.

Bruce Rawls

Spokane