Gasgoo.com (Shanghai July 1) - The Chinese government has recently begun collecting opinions for a draft of its new Environmental Protection Law, fawan.com.cn reported today. The draft mentions the introduction of a new automobile emission charge, something which several legal analysts do not advocate the use of.
According to Xu Yangguang, Assistant Dean of Renmin University's Law School, there is no reason to burden Chinese drivers with additional fees as they already have to pay a vehicle and vessel tax, consumption tax, automobile purchasing tax and other associated fees. According to Dr. Xu, the primary goal behind emission taxes should be to limit the number of polluting vehicles on Chinese roads. However, these taxes would be more effective if aimed directly at automobile manufacturers and dealerships, rather than at consumers who gain no financial profit when purchasing such a vehicle.
Dr. Xu believes that the rapid growth rate of automobiles on Chinese roads is strongly related to the underdeveloped state of public transportation in the country. As such, the extraneous emission taxes should be removed from the new draft legislation. Dr. Xu also advocates the openness and transparency of any legislation regarding new fees or taxes.
Previously in 1998, the former State Development Planning Commission and Ministry of Environmental Protection began testing a new automobile emissions fee in Hangzhou, Zhengzhou and Jilin. The fee met many national and legal obstacles, and was soon revoked in 2003.
