Not that I even remotely support the particulars of this plan but...

Most states have annual vehicle safety inspections or at least (like Maryland) l emissions tests where the odometer reading is already recorded.

another strange thing about this proposed idea is that it would penalize drivers of cars like the Prius. They buy one gallon of gas to go maybe 55 miles, while my landscaping truck uses 5 gallons for the same distance. Yet, if we both drive the same mileage, we would pay the same (mileage) tax?

i think the government should look at implanting every american with a gps system so they tax every step and breath we take. think it's time for a tea party???????????

I think the administration is making a big mistake by passing over this option.

MrRational makes a good point above that the state government is already taking your odometer reading on a yearly basis. While I think it is too intrusive to put a GPS in every car, the tax could be levied on a yearly basis, like your registration.

The answer to the question about the Prius and the landscaping truck is that they wouldn't necessarily have to be charged the same rate per mile. A vehicle miles traveled tax is designed to raise funds based on wear and tear on the roadways, the tax could be applied on a sliding scale based on vehicle weight, since the weight of the vehicle has the strongest correlation to road degradation. In this case, the landscaping truck would pay 3 times as much as the Prius. The fuel economy taxation would still be handled through the per-gallon gasoline tax, as it is today.

When all cars come standard with GPS for navigation by customer demand, it would be possible to use it to privatize the road infrastructure. It could be as big a breakthrough as deregulating the airline industry. So I wouldn't totally rule the concept out on privacy grounds, but a "millage tax" is relatively lame.

Jay - please read to the bottom of the AP article.

"Privacy concerns are based more on perception than any actual risk, Atkinson said. The satellite information would be beamed one way to the car"

I realise you need to research a little further to get the facts around GPS and privacy - and please do so.

P.S. I hope you don't carry a mobile phone - that's TWO-way information being beamed back and forth to your pocket.

Mike/February 23,
Are you Crazy? On the other hand, are you related to LaHood's?
Taxing the American people on Mileage is insane. Many people drive over 60 miles one-way to work. Then there are those who are out of work because of the governments’ mess-ups. Who hopefully, will be driving to an interview. May not be able to put gas into their vechieals let alone pay extra for the miles they need to drive to that interview.

Then, we have the elderly, who can hardly afford to live; they are giving up food, electricity, and medicine, What if they need to drive to the store, or to their physician office, or maybe they want to visit their love one in the Nursing home. So you are okay with taxing them?
How about the rest who are sitting with a pile of bills in front of them wondering, what they can pay this week, or how to keep a roof over their family heads; trying to put food on the table for their little ones, or paying for heat. How many are going to bed hungry, and cold. Bet you don’t think of that at night! All because of the wonderful Republican and Democrats think they know what best.
These Republican, Democrats, Governors, State Reps, and Congress people. Are nothing more then money hungry, SOBs. Who clam to be working for us the PEOPLE. They do not give a damn, because they are lining their pockets with our money, and get away with it.
We are already paying for their high dollars cars they ride in. We will be the ones paying for their tax mileage as well. They don’t even pay their taxes do you really think they will pay for their own tax mileage. No, they will be laughing all the way to the bank.
While we are, being ripped off.

The Government has done enough. In Illinois, we pay to drive on our roads. The State calls it paying tolls, along with the gas taxes, the mayor sold our parking meters and we are now paying more to park, to ride the CTA, and taxies, to help the cost of fixing the roads and any other crap they can think of. Yet our highways are one of the worse roads to drive on. Our wonderful x- governor paid millions of our tax dollars to have over- head signs up on the toll ways with his name.
Money that could have been use to help the transportation system. They got us here, yet they want us to bail them out. Let them work for minimum wage and raise a family. Let them feed a family on hot dogs and maybe mac and cheese.

At least the President has the guts to say ENOUGH!
Enough, taking from the middle class and poor.
Enough, of the middle class and poor giving up their money to fix our mistakes, while not one of you have given up a thing. Good for him. I hope that he will not let them ware him down.
They (the SOBs) have jobs to go to every day, they eat out, drive around not worrying about the gas prices. Why should they we are paying for it.
Come on PEOPLE start speaking up, or the government will be laughing all the way to the banks while taking away our freedom. It is about time the PEOPLE take a stand for ourselves: for our families.
So Mike sleep well tonight.

Again, little minds need to get an aerobics class. Little by little our civil rights are disappearing. It appears that all things proposed by the elders in government and businness want to track, track, track every aspect of human behavior. Are none of them able to use their minds to come up with new ideas, or are they all bent on becoming a socialist nation. We, America are not. They need to learn that change is needed through alternate energies, that I will add have been long overdue. This is the key to get America working again. I am sorry to say that in doing this, we as Americans and officials are going to have to relearn business and find better ways to advance, without taxing Americans anymore. Where would America be without the great minds of our earlier days. We need more of these today. Out with the old and in with innovation and genius.
This prosposal is as insane as the 882 page/3 page EPA law on CFL bulbs. Let's get America working again, realistically, not trying to make a quick fix with bandaid solution's. If we have learned nothing thus far, we have learned bandaid solutions do nothing to advance us. It is just a quick fix to stop the bleeding.
Sorry for the rant, just my American opinion.

Insurance companies are keeping people in the hospital less and less to save money and sending them home to recover so many require home health care. We have a serious nursing shortage in America and this mileage tax woud cause an even more serious shortage in home health care nurses. Maybe these lawmakers will wake up when they or their loved ones need nursing care at home and they are unable to get care because nurses have to pay money to see their patients and nobody is willing to do it.