Auto Executives Call For Gas Tax Hike
The recent gas prices of around $3 a gallon has some auto industry leaders calling for the U.S. government to adopt a more aggressive policy to decrease dependence on oil. Mike Jackson is the CEO if Auto Nation inc. which is the country's largest auto retailer. He suggests a 10 cents a year increase to the current federal gas tax of 18 cents per gallon. The increase on the gas tax is designed to persuade people to buy more fuel-efficient vehicles. "gas prices would have to rise to about $6 a gallon in the U.S. for consumers to change their behavior and buy more fuel efficient vehicles" says Mike Jackson.
The auto makers' argument is that consumers won't buy more fuel efficient vehicles unless they have an economic incentive to do so. Is increasing the price of gas by means of taxes the best way to go about making the change to more fuel-efficient vehicles such as hybrids?
4 comments:
I definitely don't think a rise in the gas tax will convince Americans to become more fuel efficient. If anything, I thought that just the jump im prices from the hurricanes would have an effect on this, but I was wrong. There has been no change in transportation, and no shift in the number of drivers. I, for example, am paying the high prices because my opportunity costs are greater than the price of gas. The only thing that I believe would work would be a continual rise in gas prices combined with a reduction in prices of fuel-efficient vehicles.
Economically, the idea of increasing the gas tax should increase people's incentive to conserve gas and buy more fuel-efficient cars. However, only high income workers would be able to buy hybrid cars, while low income workers would feel drastic economic effects from the increase in the gas tax. So in my opinion, in general, an increase in the gas tax would not significantly increase people's incentive to buy hybrids.
I think that increasing taxes will not persuade consumers to buy more fuel efficiant cars. Consumers need gas for everday things such as going to work. They will not be swayed by a tax. Plus the tax would be split between the consumers and the gas stations. If more fuel efficiant cars are desired than the car manufacturing companies need to manufacture them.
This idea is just an example of adding a tax to get people to do what the government wants people to do. I read this as saying that the government is trying to force people to make what the government deems to be the best choice for society. Why not just let it be, and see what people buy?!
Post a Comment