History
Missouri’s Department of Transportation (MoDOT) received three grant awards over three years totaling $4.8 million from the federal Surface Transportation System Funding Alternatives (STSFA) program. These grants enabled MoDOT to study an alternative revenue mechanism designed to address payment inequities in the state’s fuel tax structure. Specifically, MoDOT designed a proposed miles per gallon (mpg)-based registration fee to replace its current registration fee structure, along with a financial model assessing the potential impacts of such a transition, and a platform for a full-scale implementation strategy with Missouri’s Department of Revenue (MoDOR).
STSFA Awards
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Federal Fiscal Year
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Grant Amount
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Description
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2016
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$250,000
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Study a new annual registration fee schedule based on estimated mpg and determine concept feasibility.
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2017
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$2,772,000
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Conduct public outreach on concerns related to equity and data security issues.
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2018
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$1,782,000
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Deploy innovative strategies such as annual vehicle registration fees varying by vehicle fuel economy along with other user-based charges.
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Legislative Activity
In 2017, Missouri’s General Assembly adopted HCR 47, which established the “21st Century Missouri Transportation System Task Force.” This task force was a 23-member bipartisan panel consisting of participants from the private sector and legislative and executive branches. A report was published in 2018 “with recommendations regarding the state transportation system and the funding of that system.” One recommendation called for legislative changes to approve a new annual registration fee structure based on a vehicle’s mpg instead of a vehicle’s taxable horsepower.
According to MoDOT, legislation is required to implement an mpg-based registration fee structure. The Missouri General Assembly has considered five pieces of legislation over three years that would have implemented the proposed revenue mechanism supported by MoDOT. However, none of these bills had been enacted as of October 2020.
In 2018, HB 2600 would have established a base vehicle registration fee totaling $29 for all vehicles with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fuel economy under 30 mpg. Vehicles achieving an EPA fuel economy of at least 30 mpg would have paid an incremental fee per mpg, an amount set by administrative rule. This bill was referred to the House Transportation Committee but did not advance beyond that point.
In 2019, HB 500 and SB 201 would have replaced the current registration fee structure with one based on the combined city and highway mpg rating using the fuel economy label by the EPA or a rating obtained using vehicle identification numbers. The House Transportation Committee held a hearing in Feb. 2019 but did not advance the proposal beyond that point. The Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety (TIPS) Committee voted its bill out of committee in Feb. 2019, but it was not subsequently considered by the full Senate. The new base annual registration fee would have been $24 and, for each additional mile per gallon over 29 mpg and up to 60 mpg, the fee would have increased by $6. Plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles would have been subject to an mpg-based annual registration fee totaling up to $204.
In 2020, HB 2301 and SB 906 also would have replaced the horsepower-based registration fee structure with one using mpg ratings and set annual fees based on such ratings. The House version was referred to the Transportation Committee but did not receive a hearing. The Senate TIPS Committee held a hearing in March 2020 on its version, but the proposal was not advanced beyond that point. Vehicles with an mpg of 19 or less would have paid $25, 20 mpg to 29 mpg would have paid $32, 30 mpg to 39 mpg would have paid $39, 40 mpg to 49 mpg would have paid $46, 50 mpg to 59 mpg would have paid $53 and 60 mpg or more would have paid $75. Additionally, plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles would have been subject to fees of $112.50 and $125, respectively.