I am an expert at sitting on my ass you insensitive clod!

Why should I run and jump when there is a perfect capable (and awesome) robot that can do it for me?

Robots will take our jobs and our exercise routines!

So, what you are saying is that I can blame systemd? Or did I miss it and systemd is our savior?

I am confused and unsure how to be outraged by this. I am going to go eat ice cream.

Yes, because aliens on the moon told us to. We know this because when Neil Armstrong saw the aliens on the moon /in space, they brainwashed him. If this seems contradictory or paradoxical its because that is what the aliens want you to think!

It's aliens all the way down.

But.. But... It has "theory" in the name that means that you are just not smart enough to understand and I am a super genius! If I use my patented off hand metaphor to describe it, I could get my own TV show! However, describing dork-ions seems self defeating.

Register the tire like you do any other thing. Proof of tire tax please.

Yeah. I agree. You do not want people driving on unsafe tires and any tax on tires would incentive people driving on them for as long as possible. On the flip side, you could also try to incentivize proper tire use by giving tax credits for proper maintenance and use (tire rotations, keeping air pressure at optimal levels, etc).

Maybe just one more thing the police look for when they pull people over? Inadequate tire tread is the new broken tail light.

Nope. Pure speculation. IANATORE (I am not a tire or road expert)

Assuming safety is maintained on the retread. A new market that recycles a resource? Sure, why not sounds great! It doesn't have to be a black market.

Agreed. It is an idea that has problems and I haven't given much thought into solving them.

But I think you would have to handle the taxes as a separate transaction from the tire. Consider something like a loan from the state. You pay back the taxes owed over an established time (no interest). Once paid, you are done.

You could try to incentive proper tire use by having little tire tax deductions to try and offset the large cost. e.g. Rotate your tires every 10k miles, gain $100 credit that goes toward the total taxed amount. Or ensuring that every month your tires are properly inflated you gain $10 (tire pressure can effect mpg too!), or some amount worth the effort (that doesn't make the system ineffective).

As far as the black markets, tax dodging, etc. Maybe something like car registration, proof you are paying/have paid. One more paper to drive with. Did you pay your taxes to drive on this road?

I am not sure. If someone has some ideas I would like to hear.

I would guess you could pay a smaller tax if the tier did not reach EOL. I am not sure how that would be enforced so maybe it isn't practical (maybe give a cause for a tire replacement, submitting the old tire as proof, that could lower the one time tax).

I think the second question is a good one because this tax (and the one in TFA is about ensuring the infrastructure is maintained with a stable revenue stream). If the state is not able to maintain the roads with an adequate revenue source, obviously there are other issues going on with that government.

My state legislators actually asked this question and got me thinking about a one time tax on tires. It has the benefits of the gas tax (anonymous, based on usage) but the added benefit that you can approximate the weight that a tire will carry on the road.

During a purchase you could either pay all taxes up front and be done with it or set up a monthly billing cycle so that poor can still make ends meet without dreading lost tread. Once taxes have been paid you are done and do not have to pay that tax until your next tire purchase. If a tire is expected to last 100k miles it, it is estimated to carry X weight for Y length of time (miles driven) meaning Z dollars in maintenance. Tax = Z - any other road infrastructure income/subsidies (gas tax still in effect could subsidized the tire tax making it cheaper).

This could also help spur better usage of tires (keeping them properly inflated [increasing MPG], rotating tires, etc). I am not sure how to handle used tires. Also, this doesn't help if you have to travel on dirt roads or poor roads that wear on tires more than pristine new black top.

Just a random thought, I haven't gave it much thought after initially discussing it with legislators.