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A state senator from Chandler has introduced a bill that could make life easier for thousands of senior citizens. The bill is worth supporting, but it appears it hasn't attracted much attention outside the state Capitol. The bill introduced by Republican Jay Tibshraeny would eliminate the car-registration tax for people 65 and older who are living on modest incomes.

If approved, Tibshraeny's proposal would cost the state about $4.7 million a year. That's a minuscule piece of the state's $10.2 billion budget, especially in a year when there's a revenue surplus estimated at $1 billion.

The eligibility formula used in the bill says individuals 65 and older with an income of about $28,000 a year, or couples with an income of $52,000, are exempt from paying the registration tax. The exemption is good for one vehicle per household. It cannot be used for a motor home.

The formula used for taxing vehicles in Arizona is based on the value of the vehicle. The tax on a new $25,000 car, for example, is $420 the first year. That amount is reduced the second year, as the value of the car drops.

The fee can be a hardship for people on low incomes, even though they're not driving new cars. It's particularly troublesome to elders living on very modest fixed incomes. Typically, their Social Security checks increase by small amounts every year.

Seldom is the increase enough to cover rising costs of basic utilities, gas for their cars, property taxes and higher premiums for supplemental health insurance, if they can afford the insurance to begin with. A little tax relief would be a big help. The bill was approved in the Senate Finance Committee and comes up for a second reading in the Senate later this week.

Tibshraeny said some critics have asked why the bill applies only to senior citizens, others want to know why it's only for senior citizens on fixed (or low) incomes. Extending the tax break to a broader group, he said, would make the cost of the bill "astronomical and it just would not go through." In its present form the bill would eliminate the vehicle tax for roughly 25,000 people.

"It makes sense to me," Tibshraeny said. "And I figure, if we can start to allow this to this group now, that we can expand it in future years."

The bill has a more practical application than a proposal advocated by Gov. Janet Napolitano. The governor has suggested a law that would link the vehicle-registration tax to the fuel efficiency of the vehicle being registered. If you drive a car that gets better gas mileage, your registration fee would be reduced.

We understand the intent of the proposal, but the governor's concern for conservation and fuel efficiency is misdirected.

It makes consumers share the responsibility for engineering decisions made by automobile manufacturers. It also penalizes people with large families and those living in remote rural areas who need bigger, heavy-duty vehicles.

It's also true that many elderly people do not feel safe driving very small, lightweight vehicles. By excluding them from the tax relief for smaller vehicles, the governor's bill would in effect make them pay a penalty for their fears.

Cars are a necessity in Arizona, where mass transit is still light years away from being fully efficient and a viable choice for all.

Tibshraeny's bill is a modest proposal that can make a difference to a specific population in need of help. It deserves widespread support.

The governor's proposal, while well-intentioned, is an idealistic stab at changing Arizona law to solve a global problem. A good thought, but totally impractical.