The Montana House of Representatives on Tuesday endorsed a bill creating an additional $90 fee to register a hybrid vehicle in the state. Electric vehicles would be subject to a $180 fee.

The charges for fuel-efficient vehicles are part of House Bill 205, which also creates a system under which the state will recoup gas-tax money lost as diesel trucks convert to liquid natural gas.

Rep. Frank Garner, R-Kalispell, endorsed the measure as one that would help pay for state infrastructure projects amid declining revenues from the state’s 27-cent gas tax.

He cited a recent report by road transportation research organization Trip, which ranked Montana as having the third-highest rate of traffic fatalities per miles traveled by vehicles in the state.

“What’s important for us to recognize here is we’ve given this kind of exception for a long time,” he said. “The reduction in the amount that is being paid toward our roads, because of fuel efficiency, has really impacted us negatively. ... This is a time for us to say, ‘Everybody’s in it together.’”

Rep. Laurie Bishop, D-Livingston, argued the fee wasn’t a fair way to recover declining gas-tax fuels. She used the example of a constituent who drives a hybrid Toyota Highlander, an SUV that she said gets about 24 miles per gallon.

“If we’re using ‘hybrid’ as a definition of how we equitably think about how we really need to reinforce the resources that are coming to support our highways and roads, the hybrid is not our best vehicle to determine that in an equitable way that’s going to make sense for most Montanans,” Bishop said.

The bill’s sponsor, Alan Redfield, R-Livingston, said the measure was a forward-looking proposal focused on taxing natural gas used for transportation, as commercial trucks nationwide are increasingly switching to the currently un-taxed fuel source.

“This is a step to get ahead of that move, because they’re not taxed the same,” he said. “In the category of fairness, this is user-based.”

The state departments of Transportation and Justice estimated the bill would generate an average of about $1 million per year over the next four years.

The fuel-efficiency fees would also increase $6 for every cent the state’s gas tax is increased. Garner has said he plans to sponsor a bill to raise the gas tax, but hasn’t specified how large the hike would be. The Montana Infrastructure Coalition has advocated for a 10-cent increase to fund infrastructure projects.

The bill passed the House’s second-reading vote by 67-33, but was then referred to the House Appropriations Committee, which must consider the measure before it heads back to the House for a final vote.

Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.