The cost of buying hybrid cars or other alternative fuel cars are high, but the Illinois General Assembly could make it more affordable.

State Rep. William Black (R-Danville) proposed a bill in October 2005 that would offer a $500 income tax deductible for anybody who purchases a flex fuel car.

Flex fuel cars include hybrid cars, electric cars, ethanol 85 cars and natural gas cars.

The bill would only be in effect for one fiscal year and was supposed to have been passed for this tax season, he said.

But the bill was never released to a committee.

“Nobody has come out to oppose the bill, it just never got assigned instead,” Black said.

Working families are spending too much money on gas, he said.

“You have to give incentives to get people to buy new fuel-efficient cars to get things to change,” Black said.

State Rep. Bob Pritchard (R-Hinckley) said he supports the bill and is not pleased that it got stuck in the rules committee.

“Something has to be done to reduce dependency on foreign oil and reduce the consumption of oil,” Pritchard said.

The government should encourage private activity that is responsible and help individuals who cannot afford flex fuel cars on their own, Pritchard said.

This bill was one of many Republicans thought up in a brainstorming session last year, Pritchard said. Another bill from that session focused on lowering gas prices was also introduced but never made it out of the rules committee.

“We came up with a number of ideas to promote the use of reusable fuels and even grant tax holidays for gas during parts of the year,” Pritchard said. “Rather than doing nothing, we are trying to at least take a step in the right direction.”

But the reason the hybrid tax credit bill did not get assigned out of the rules committee could be more about timing and less about political parties.

“Anytime there are tax credits, the state loses revenue,” said State Sen. Susan Garrett (D-Lake Forest).

The current economic conditions of the state are conducive to losing revenue.

“We’re getting out of a $5 billion budget deficit from the past three years and the state needs revenue,” she said.

Tax credits are not voted on very often, she said.

Garret said she has proposed tax credits herself in the past and they also did not make it out of the rules committee.

“It’s a good idea and I would like to do this but it will have a negative effect on the overall revenue for the state,” Garrett said. “Until we’re through this major deficit, I don’t see how we can offer a lot of tax credits for consumers.”

Tax credits that make it to voting usually affect the work force, work opportunities and economic development, Garrett said.