autograph dealers

Bill Proposes Doubling Automobile Sales Tax

North Carolina consumers would have to pay more than double the current tax on the purchase of a new car or truck under a tax increase proposal introduced to the state senate last week.

Senate Bill 1201, introduced by state Sen. Dan Clodfelter (D-Charlotte), would raise the Highway Use Tax on a new vehicle from the current 3 percent to 6.75 percent.

If passed, the tax would raise an estimated $900 million annually for the state's Highway Trust Fund.

Not surprisingly, the bill already has a growing list of opponents. The bill's one known supporter, Sen. Clodfelter, could not be reached for comment.

"To ask North Carolinians to pay an additional $900 million in taxes each year would add approximately $20 to each consumer's monthly car payment," North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association President Robert Glaser said.