AN ACT
To conserve natural resources, maintain public infrastructure, and localize supply chains by enacting a mileage fee on goods transported for sale.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Mileage Fee Act.”
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
(a) Congress finds that—
(1) Transportation causes major environmental harm through carbon emissions;
(2) In order to reduce emissions from transportation, it is necessary to reduce the use of long-distance vehicular travel;
(3) Mileage fees can shorten supply chains and long-distance travel while recovering the variable costs of road use, including road wear, congestion, and other external costs; and
(4) Implementing mileage fees for the use of public roads is in the interest of the United States.
SEC. 3: DEFINITIONS.
(a) In this Act—
(1) The term “Act” means the Mileage Fee Act;
(2) The term “Department” means the Department of the Treasury;
(3) The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Treasury;
(4) The term “vehicle” means any air-based, land-based, or seafaring recreational or commercial motor carrier meeting the federal safety standards set forth in the Department of Defense’s commercial vehicle classification guide, whose sole purpose is to provide transportation services for passengers or commodities;
(5) The term “subject vehicle” means a vehicle for which the fees established by this Act are applicable;
(6) The term “heavy truck” means vehicles classified as 2 through 13 inclusive in the Federal Highway Administration Vehicle Category Classification System;
(7) The term “passenger automobile” means all sedans, coupes, sport utility vehicles, and station wagons manufactured primarily for the purpose of carrying passengers;
(8) The term “personally identifying information” means any data that identifies or describes a person including, but not limited to, travel pattern data, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, photographs, bank account information, and credit card numbers;
(9) The term “registered owner” means a person other than a vehicle dealer, who is required to register a subject vehicle; and
(10) The term “onboard vehicle metering system” means the technology that tracks a vehicle’s miles traveled from a product’s point of origin to the point of receipt.
SEC. 4. MILEAGE FEE.
(a) GENERAL RULE.— There is hereby imposed upon the owner of all subject vehicles a mileage fee.
(b) FEE STRUCTURE.— The fee shall be structured according to the following formulas—
(1) Air-based vehicle, 20 cents per mile;
(2) Maritime vehicle, 15 cents per mile;
(3) Heavy truck, 10 cents per mile;
(4) Rail, 5 cents per mile; and
(5) Passenger vehicle, 2.5 cents per mile.
(c) COMMENCEMENT.— This fee shall be paid by registered owners of subject vehicles on June 1 of each calendar year, commencing June 1, 2027.
(1) The mileage fee shall begin to accrue from the date on which the registered owner is first required to register the subject vehicle.
(d) LEASE.— During the term of a lease, the lessee of a subject vehicle shall pay the mileage fee for metered use by the subject vehicle.
(e) UNCREWED VEHICLES.— The mileage fee shall be paid by the registered owner of all uncrewed subject vehicles, including remotely or automatically controlled drones.
(f) EXCEPTIONS.— This section shall not apply to a vehicle that is owned by a State, any political subdivision of a State, or the Federal government.
SEC 5. FEE RECORDING.
(a) METHODS.— The Secretary shall establish methods for recording and reporting the miles traveled by all subject vehicles. These methods shall be chosen from a non-exhaustive list of onboard vehicle metering systems that vary by mode of travel: automated GPS for road-based vehicles and maritime vehicles, black-box GPS systems for air-based vehicles, and on-train monitoring recorders for rail.
(b) CONSIDERATIONS.— When taking action under this subsection the Secretary shall consider—
(1) The accuracy of the data collected;
(2) The security of the technology;
(3) The technology’s resistance to falsification;
(4) Ease of audit compliance; and
(5) Other relevant factors that the Department deems important.
(c) PRIVACY.— The system established to collect the mileage fee under this Act may not involve the collection of any personally identifying information beyond what is necessary to properly calculate, report, and collect the fees established in this Act.
(d) IMPLEMENTATION.— The Secretary shall complete and disseminate methods for recording miles traveled by subject vehicles no later than January 1, 2027.
SEC. 6. PASSENGER RAIL TRUST FUND.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.— There is established in the Treasury a ‘Passenger Rail Trust Fund’, to which no less than 50% of all revenue raised by this Act will be appropriated.
(b) PURPOSE.— The purpose of this fund is to improve publicly operated passenger rail facilities, modernize the rail fleet, provide the capital necessary for railway development, and conserve the supply of natural resources through reducing energy consumption and increasing efficiency.
(c) MANAGEMENT.— It shall be the duty of the Secretary to manage all revenue allocated in the ‘Passenger Rail Trust Fund’ for the purposes specified in subsection (b).
SEC. 7. HIGHWAY TRUST FUND.
(a) APPROPRIATIONS.— No less than 50% of all revenue raised by this Act will be allocated to the Highway Trust Fund.
SEC. 8. FEE RATE ADJUSTMENT.
(a) GENERAL RULE.— The Secretary shall adjust the fees imposed by this Act no later than January 1, 2028 and on January 1 of each year thereafter.
(1) The Secretary shall consider issues of inflation, equity, efficiency, and ecological health when making these adjustments.
SEC. 9. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) GENERAL RULE.— On request of the Secretary, the Attorney General may bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce compliance with this Act.
SEC. 10. PENALTIES.
(a) PENALTIES.— Any person who violates the provisions of this Act, or any person who willfully and knowingly makes or reports false statements in any documents or reports required under this Act, shall be subject to the penalties specified in Part 20 of the IRS Handbook.