Oregon and Washington have both proposed a measure that will tax Sports Utility Vehicles more than the average automobile.

The idea behind this measure is to try and encourage drivers to choose more fuel-efficient vehicles and to discourage gas-guzzling vehicles as much as possible.

Of course it would be ideal to decrease the amount of unnecessary fossil fuel use in times where it is becoming scarcer, but a measure like this hardly seems to be effective.

One flaw in this plan is that many older cars, vans, and large trucks are also highly inefficient. Even if these vehicles are not as inefficient as SUVs might be, they are still contributing to the same problem. How can it be decided which cars are inefficient enough to need to be taxed?

Another thing that must be realized is that many owners of cars that need large amounts of fuel, including SUVs, are already forced to spend up to $150 dollars on gas each week. If that has not already discouraged drivers from inefficient vehicles, then I don’t see how adding an extra tax will.

To some people, SUVs are very helpful and convenient cars. Many of these people choose to drive these kinds of cars because they often have to haul a lot of people and equipment. Most people chose SUVs to fit their lifestyles before gas prices had raised to over $3 dollars a gallon, and certainly before there was talk of being taxed.

People choose the kind of cars they drive for a reason. Most people are careful in finding a vehicle that suits their lifestyle.

Gas prices are already punishing SUV owners for driving inefficient automobiles. An additional fee would be unnecessary.