Stoush over electric vehicle tax nears Australian high court hearing

theguardian.com:

A stoush between the commonwealth and states over electric vehicle taxes has moved closer to a high court hearing in a process carrying wide-ranging implications for revenue raising, lawyers say.

In September 2021, two drivers of electric cars launched a high court challenge that argued the imposition of a tax of 2-2.5 cents per kilometre by the Victorian government was unconstitutional because the state does not have the constitutional power to impose such fees.

A special case on the matter was filed on Monday with a hearing expected late this year or early in 2023, Jack McLean, an associate of Equity Generation Lawyers that filed the original challenge, said.

New South Wales became the first to intervene on the side of the Victorian government two months ago, with all states and territories signing up by July. In that month, the commonwealth government intervened on the side of the Melbourne-based plaintiffs, engineering consultant Kathleen Davies and nurse manager Chris Vanderstock.

“The case has potentially broad legal implications for the ability of state governments to impose similar taxes,” McLean said.

The right of governments other than the commonwealth to raise revenue has frequently been tested in the high court. Australia has a relatively high degree of vertical fiscal imbalance, where most of the revenue-raising is done by the federal government but much of the spending is done by states and territories.

When introduced in April 2021, the Victorian tax was pilloried by some as the “worst EV policy in the world”, an issue the plaintiffs hope to highlight.

“Our clients want to see sensible and effective policy that drives the energy transition, not a new clunky new tax that punishes Victorian families who have