Fuel economy: Double jeopardy for tax payers?
Just let Congress manage our economy?Yesterday, I blogged on how the city of Flint is providing millions in tax breaks to GM to help fund the Chevy Volt, and GM is also seeking millions from the state as well. Likewise, GM is also requesting part of $50 billion in low interest, government backed loans to help in the conversion to vehicles with better fuel economy, such as smaller vehicles and hybrid cars. And, when GM finally starts selling the Volt, it will probably need large tax incentives for consumers in order to make these vehicles affordable.
And, if Ford and Chrysler ever develop real plans to address fuel economy, they'll need just as much help.
Yet, the pain doesn't stop there. Automakers claim that CAFE will increase the price of all vehicles significantly. Thus, not only are tax payers committing billions in loans and tax breaks to Detroit, they're also going to have to pay more for the products their tax dollars are helping to fund.
Without doubt, US automakers provide great jobs for many Americans, but how did things get so screwed up? More important, can the US auto industry really be saved, or are we just delaying the inevitable?
Labels: Chevy Volt electric vehicle concept, Congress, fuel economy, hybrid tax credits, Hybrid Vehicles
posted by Dahcredyns at
4:21 AM
2 Comments:
The US automakers and the auto manufacturing field is the same as snorting cocaine....we are so used to having them around that we can't imagine not having them.
They know this. They control how we respond and how we live.
Right now the control is out of peoples' hands...because we let it slip away. We still thing we have control but we don't.
Until we solve that part of the equation, nothing will change and we will continue to be screwed from all sides.
i certainly agree with the first paragraph, but i don't think the people have ever had control. we've had the potential for control, we still do, but we are divided on too many issues.
my problem is that the people running the auto industry, the health care industry, the financial industry, etc are extremely wealthy. in fact, between the people running these companies and their shareholders, these people represent the wealthy, ruling class - the people that own and control the great majority of america's wealth.
yet, we, the tax payers, have to provide billions to bail them out? their companies can't survive without our money, yet they've made millions and even billions?
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