Oregon is testing the first mileage-based tax that they hope will ultimately replace the gas tax. The gas tax is primarily used to fund the Department of Transportation so that it can build and fix roads. Oregon has not raised its gas tax in 13 years and is now looking for better ways to pay for the upkeep of the roads. The reasoning for this change is due to more people driving fuel efficient cars has lead the State to rethink the gas tax.

Here is how it would work:

The milage-fee project was designed by engineers at Oregon State University. The system works by using a global positioning system in a car to determine the number of miles traveled inside and outside of Oregon and at what times, which could lead to peak driving-time fees. When the car pulls into a service station, a radio transmitter sends the data to a reader in a gas pump. The mileage fee is added to the bill, and the gas tax is subtracted.

Get the full article here.

So if they are monitoring how far you drove is there any reason not to think that they will also monitor where you drove?

Where will the ACLU come down on this idea?