WA Electric, Hybrid Owners Zapped by New $75 Fee

If you own a hybrid or electric car in Washington state, soon you will be feeling like you stuck a hairpin in the light socket.

Washington state legislators and officials say soon owners of such vehicles will start paying an additional $75 fee annually to help pay for, among other things, new electric charging stations to be built across the state.

The fee comes from original Democratic pushed bills that also used the funding to promote electric vehicle use, reduce carbon emissions, and funding projects such as the electrification of public transit (converting gas or diesel buses to electrical).

Hybrid owners have opposed the plan, saying they shouldn't have to pay it if their vehicle doesn't have a plug in, but they will be stuck anyway.

The new fee will go into effect this month, during October. According to the Seattle Times, hybrid owners will be getting the bill from the Department of Licensing for charging stations they will never use.