Consumers in the market for a used car in New York may be interested in a recent decision by the Obama administration that should benefit the auto industry as a whole.

Last week, President Obama proposed a fee to recover the $117 billion spent by the government to help bailout companies affected by the recession. The new “financial crisis responsibility fee” will target industries that took money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).

The good news for the auto industry is that General Motors, Chrysler and delinquent mortgage brokers are all exempt from the fee. The tax will primarily be imposed on financial institutions with over $50 billion in assets.

The auto industry is reportedly exempt from the fee because of the fragile nature of the current auto market and the fact that the administration believes that banks helped cause the crisis that doomed car companies, the Wall Street Journal reports. The fact that some major financial institutions recently gave out large year-end bonuses may have had an impact on the decision.

“We want our money back, and we’re going to get it,” said Obama, quoted by the LA Times. “If these companies are in good enough shape to afford massive bonuses, they surely are in good enough shape to afford to pay back every penny to taxpayers.”

People in the market for used cars in New York may be interested in a recent study by Oxford University detailing the possible future of the automobile industry. According to the authors of the study, the most efficient way to reduce vehicle emissions in the short term is to downscale the size and weight of diesel and gas-powered cars.

Researchers at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment suggest that countries should not rely on manufacturers to produce and market electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles, as they are likely to remain niche products due to limited battery life and consumer expense.

The study’s authors believe that governments should impose taxes on owners of inefficient vehicles and invest money into public transportation systems.

“There is ample opportunity for emissions reductions by further improvements of currently available technology combined with a change in user habits,” said lead author Oliver Inderwildi.

He added that manufacturers will only stop selling large vehicles when consumers refrain from purchasing them. The report states that nations should not force manufacturers to provide a “silver bullet” to fix the world’s climate issue.

It isn’t hard to figure out where the bill will come from, but people who chose to take advantage of the Cash for Clunkers program over used cars in New Jersey will face the same cost as they would have had they bought a vehicle without the program, according to an Edmunds.com report.

The company noted that the CARS program cost taxpayers about $24,000 for each vehicle sold, while the average price of a new vehicle with average incentives would have been only several hundred dollars higher.

“October [new car] sales are up, but without Cash for Clunkers, sales would have been even better,” notes CEO Jeremy Anwyl. “This suggests that the industry’s recovery is gaining momentum.”

However, at a cost of $3 billion, the measure of efficacy considering the pricey move of destroying used cars in New Jersey and throughout the country will be based on environmental impact, notes senior analyst Dr David Tompkins, and people vary on their belief that there was a net environmental impact gained from the CARS program.

Now, with Edmunds saying that automakers are becoming stronger, buyers may want to consider a used car in New Jersey to save money before the bill comes in higher taxes.