Some Georgia EV drivers are complaining that they’re still being charged for special access to carpool lanes despite such access no longer being allowed, reports 11Alive. Previously, drivers who purchased an Alternative Fuel Vehicle license plate for their qualified vehicle, typically a pure EV or a plug-in hybrid, were allowed to use the carpool lanes even if there was only one person in the vehicle. This program ended at the end of September, yet the state is still charging the same price for this plate despite not providing the previous benefit.
The more restrictive carpool lane rules come not from the state, but the federal government. The end of the EV tax credit is the most well-known incentive that expired in September, but a lesser-known one was that single-occupant low-emission and energy-efficient vehicles had been permitted to use HOV lanes since 2005, according to the Department of Energy. Thirteen states, including Georgia, took advantage of this provision. The state allowed qualifying cars to receive, for an extra fee, Alternative Fuel Vehicle plates that clearly identified them as being legal in the HOV lane, even with only one occupant. While the EV tax credit was a casualty of the Trump Administration, the most recent law allowing these vehicles to use carpool lanes, the FAST Act of 2015, only authorized it until September of this year. Congress needed to pass another extension to continue this benefit, but did not, allowing it to expire.
A special plate, but no special privileges
It is not Georgia’s fault that this special privilege has gone away, as federal law takes precedence. However, the way Georgia has handled its Alternative Fuel Vehicle plates since then has been questionable, at best. These plates served the same function as California’s Clean Air Vehicle permit. California stopped issuing these stickers when federal law shut it down, but Georgia has continued to renew and issue new Alternative Fuel Vehicle plates at an additional cost of $35 per renewal and $59 per newly issued plate, in addition to the standard $20 annual fee, just as it did before. The Georgia Department of Revenue defends this by claiming that the Alternative Fuel Vehicle plate is now just one of the many specialty plates the state offers. In a statement to 11Alive:
“The AFV plate will remain available as an optional specialty license plate for Georgia drivers. We have issued guidance to the local county tag offices, and customers who no longer wish to use the AFV plate may visit their local tag office to exchange it for a standard plate at no cost.”
The spokesperson also pointed to press releases from GDOT and the State Road and Tollway Authority regarding the expiring benefits.
Indeed, the Georgia Department of Revenue lists many specialty plates on its website that charge the same $35 Annual Special Tag Fee as the Alternative Fuel Vehicle plate. However, many people paid the premium to gain single-occupant access to carpool lanes, not to brag to the world that they drive an Alternative Fuel Vehicle, which is now the only purpose the plate serves. While the state did issue press releases about drivers no longer being allowed to use carpool lanes, it did not stop charging them for the benefit, filling the state treasury with an extra $212,000 since it expired, and counting. It’s the same sort of scam Texas pulled when it ended car inspections, then immediately charged an “inspection program replacement fee” to continue collecting money for no services offered. While it’s good that Georgia will allow current Alternative Fuel Vehicle plate holders to exchange them for standard plates at no charge and avoid paying extra in the future, this doesn’t help anyone who has already paid the extra fee, as refunds are not available.
