Informant38

The tax deductions � a combination of longstanding provisions in the tax code and breaks instituted after the 2001 terror attacks to spur the economy � are available only to small-business owners and the self-employed.

Environmental groups, alerted to the tax breaks by a report this week in The Detroit News, want them ended. They note that despite concerns about the nation's growing dependence on imported oil, the deductions provide far greater incentive to buy gas guzzlers like Ford Excursions and General Motors Hummers than to buy the most fuel-efficient cars, like the Toyota Prius.

All together, an eligible buyer of a 2003 Hummer H2 could deduct $34,912 of the $48,800 base price in the vehicle's first year of service, according to tax rules. That would translate into a tax savings of nearly $13,500 for someone in the highest personal income tax bracket.