Quote:
Originally Posted by Ductape
flybouy, I'll take it one step further. Why would people assume the government is just looking out for us ? The government makes .50 / gallon (state + federal) per gallon of diesel sold. When diesel emissions were mandated and millions of tractor trailers on the road were getting 7 mpg pre emission, then down to 4.5 mpg post emissions. Which does the government prefer ?
|
Which is why many states are now looking at a different tax structure to obtain revenue for road/highway maintenance. When cars got 10-12 MPG, the tax base on fuel was sufficient to repair the roads and build new ones. Now that cars are getting 20+ MPG and headed toward 30+ MPG, less fuel means less tax dollars and not enough funding to repair/build roads.
I'm not suggesting that emissions control systems is a means to get tax dollars, but it's beneficial to the tax system to sell more fuel and keep the tax revenue flowing.