The cost of owning an electric vehicle in Illinois may be going way, way up in Illinois. State Senator Martin Sandoval has proposed a bill that would increase the annual registration fee for owning an EV in the state from $17.50 to $1,000. It’s part of the state’s plan for collecting additional funding for improving roads and other infrastructure.
While hybrids and plug-in electric hybrids would be exempt from that hike, the bill also increases fees for standard vehicles from $98 to $148 and the gas tax to 44 cents a gallon. EV owners are presumably getting the raw end of the deal because they haven’t been contributing to the state’s gas tax revenue.