Arlington, VA car tax subsidy for hybrids

Last year Arlington County charged no personal property tax for the first $20,000 in assessed value for clean-fuel vehicles, which basically meant zero tax owed on my Prius (saving me over $600). Their proposed budget for 2008 will extend the subsidy, causing drivers of other vehicles to have to pay more:

"Arlington County's leadership on environmental initiatives could cost people who own conventional gas-guzzling cars even more money in personal property taxes in the coming year than those who drive cars that operate on clean fuels."

washingtonpost.com

Personally I take exception to the angle of this story. They talked to 2 people who liked the tax break and only one who didn't, and the guy who didn't like it called it "silly." Doesn't sound angry to me. Not to mention, they estimate that the worst-hit people will have to pay only $29 more, and most people will see less of an increase.

p.s. Another outcome of Arlington's emphasis on environmental initiatives: the new hybrid-only cab company Envirocab is now in business, and I've seen several of their cabs (Prii) around the area. I've also seen several new hybrid Red Top cabs (that's the big cab company around here), including a HyCam and a Ford Escape Hybrid.

 

One thing I want to find out is what the rules are for these cab companies, e.g, if I'm riding my bike outside the county and I have a mechanical problem and need to call a cab to get home, can I call Environcab or Red Top to pick me up and take me back to Arlington. I know you can call an Arlington cab from DC to take you back to Arlington, but I want to know the range of places they can pick you up from.