Owners of electric-powered mopeds could be hit with a $100 annual registration fee as a result of legislation passed by the 2013 General Assembly.
The Virginian-Pilot reports (http://bit.ly/ZLPUAN ) that the fee is an unintended consequence of the sweeping transportation funding bill and a separate measure regulating mopeds.
The road funding measure includes a $100 registration surcharge on alternative vehicles such as hybrids. And because mopeds would be classified as state-registered vehicles, those with electric motors would be subject to the fee. That means owners of electric scooters that retail in some places for $800 to $900 would pay more than one-tenth of the purchase price in annual fees.
Republican Sen. Steve Newman of Lynchburg has asked Gov. Bob McDonnell to amend his moped bill to fix the problem.
