Yesterday, the Trump Administration proposed to revise required fuel efficiency standards for passenger cars and light trucks imposed under the Biden Administration that would have required a transition to primarily electric vehicles by 2031. The existing requirement is that manufacturers reach 50 miles per gallon efficiencies for light duty vehicles by 2031 and the proposed standards would move the requirement to 34 miles per gallon by 2031. The proposed rule has been filed for publication in the Federal Register by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 

How does this impact townships? The liquid fuels funds that townships receive is primarily funded by about 14.5% of the tax charged on vehicle fuel purchased in Pennsylvania. An alternate tax is charged on alternate fuels and electric charging stations, and a new electric vehicle charge for residential vehicles will contributes to this fund, but the primary funding is from the gas tax. Decreases to liquid fuels funds in recent years have been driven by increased vehicle fuel efficiency due to federal mandates.