SB3313

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that as fuel tax revenues decrease, the department of transportation has recommended the adoption of a per-mile road usage charge system to provide sustainable funding for the State's road infrastructure. The legislature further finds that with its existing vehicle inspection program, Hawaii is well-positioned to transition to a per-mile road usage charge system at low administrative costs. The legislature also finds that replacing the registration surcharge on electric vehicles with a mileage-based road user fee is a minimally disruptive first step to transition the State to a per-mile road usage charge system as recommended by the department of transportation. With the increase in public support for fuel-efficient electric and alternative fuel vehicles, the shift to fees based on vehicle miles traveled is fair to all drivers within the State and ensures that the owners of alternative fuel vehicles pay a fair share of Hawaii's roadway maintenance costs.

SECTION 2. Chapter 249, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§249- State mileage-based road user fee. (a) All electric vehicles in the State, except for vehicles that qualify for any of the exemptions in sections 249-4, 249-5.5, 249-6, and 249-6.5, in addition to all other fees and taxes levied by this chapter, shall be subject to an annual state mileage-based road user fee. The fee shall be levied by the county director of finance at the rate of cents per mile traveled during the year, based on a comparison of the electric vehicle's current odometer reading with the odometer reading of the previous year, as noted on the electric vehicle's certificate of inspection pursuant to section 286-26(e). The fee shall be capped at the amount that the average non-electric vehicle in the State paid in fuel tax for the previous year.

The fee shall be paid each year together with all other taxes and fees levied by this chapter on a staggered basis as established by each county as authorized by section 286-51, and the state mileage-based road user fee shall likewise be staggered so that the state mileage-based road user fee is due and payable at the same time and shall be collected together with the county registration fee. The state mileage-based road user fee shall be deemed delinquent if not paid with the county registration fee. The respective counties shall collect this fee together with the vehicle registration tax collected for the county and shall transfer the moneys collected under this section to the state director of finance for deposit into the state highway fund established under section 248-8.

(b) For the purposes of this section, "electric vehicle" means a vehicle, with four or more wheels, that draws propulsion energy from a battery with at least four kilowatt hours of energy storage capacity that can be recharged from an external source of electricity."

SECTION 3. Section 249-31, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) All vehicles and motor vehicles in the State as defined in section 249-1, including antique motor vehicles, except as otherwise provided in sections 249-4, 249-6, and 249‑31.5, shall be subject to a $45 annual vehicle registration fee; provided that [~~electric vehicles and~~] alternative fuel vehicles shall pay an annual vehicle registration surcharge fee of $50, which shall be assessed and collected beginning with the first registration renewal for every [~~electric vehicle and~~] alternative fuel vehicle and shall be deposited into the state highway fund established under section 248-8. The fee shall be paid each year together with all other taxes and fees levied by this chapter on a staggered basis as established by each county as authorized by section 286-51, and the state registration for that county shall likewise be staggered so that the state registration fee is due and payable at the same time and shall be collected together with the county fee. The state registration fee shall be deemed delinquent if not paid with the county registration fee. The respective counties shall collect this fee together with the vehicle registration tax collected for the county and shall transfer the moneys collected under this section to the State.

For the purposes of this section, "alternative fuel vehicle" means a vehicle equipped to be powered by a non-petroleum-based fuel, but excludes an electric, electricity-recharged, or hybrid electric motor vehicle."

SECTION 4. Section 286-26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (e) to read as follows:

"(e) Upon application for a certificate of inspection to be issued for a vehicle or moped, an inspection as prescribed by the director under subsection (g) shall be conducted on the vehicle or moped, and if the vehicle or moped is found to be in a safe operating condition, a certificate of inspection shall be issued upon payment of a fee to be determined by the director. The certificate shall state the effective date, the termination date, the name of the issuing insurance carrier, and the policy number of the motor vehicle insurance identification card for the inspected motor vehicle as specified by section 431:10C-107 or state the information contained in the proof of insurance card as specified by section 431:10G-106. For an electric vehicle, the certificate shall also state the odometer reading of the vehicle on the date that the vehicle was inspected. A sticker, authorized by the director, shall be affixed to the vehicle or moped at the time a certificate of inspection is issued. An inspection sticker which has been lost, stolen, or destroyed shall be replaced without reinspection by the inspection station that issued the original inspection sticker upon presentation of the current certificate of inspection; provided that the current certificate of inspection and inspection sticker shall not have expired at the time the replacement is requested. The director shall adopt rules to determine the fee for replacement of lost, stolen, or destroyed inspection stickers.

As used in this subsection, "electric vehicle" means a vehicle that draws propulsion energy from a battery with at least four kilowatt hours of energy storage capacity that can be recharged from an external source of electricity."

SECTION 5. Section 286-41, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

"(b) Application for the registration of a vehicle shall be made upon the appropriate form furnished by the director of finance and shall contain the name, occupation, and address of the owner and legal owner; and, if the applicant is a member of the United States naval or military forces, the applicant shall give the organization and station. All applications shall also contain a description of the vehicle, including the name of the maker; the type of fuel for the use of which it is adapted, such as gasoline, diesel oil, liquefied petroleum gas[;], or electricity; the serial or motor number; the date first sold by the manufacturer or dealer; a further description of the vehicle as is called for in the form; and other information as may be required by the director of finance, to establish legal ownership. A person applying for initial registration of a neighborhood electric vehicle shall certify in writing that a notice of the operational restrictions applying to the vehicle as provided in section 291C-134 are contained on a permanent notice attached to or painted on the vehicle in a location that is in clear view of the driver."

SECTION 6. There is appropriated out of the funds received by the State from the American Rescue Plan Act, Public Law 117‑2, Section 9901, the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2022-2023 for the initial implementation of the state mileage-based road user fee beginning with electric vehicles.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the highways division of the department of transportation for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 7. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 8. This Act shall take effect on January 1, 2023; provided that section 6 of this Act shall take effect on July 1, 2022.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3313
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII