WALLINGFORD - Town officials are considering whether to offer tax breaks to residents who purchase hybrid cars as a way to encourage environmentally friendly spending.

Under state law, the town can offer property tax exemptions for hybrid passenger cars that have a highway gas mileage of 40 miles a gallon or more. The state law does not offer a reimbursement, which means that the town would have to shoulder the burden of providing the tax break.

The exemption would serve as an incentive to buy hybrid vehicles, which are more expensive than traditional cars.

"I think we want to encourage people to buy cars that are easier on the environment," said Republican Town Councilor Jerry Farrell Jr., who supports the exemption.

Farrell said he and his wife were considering buying hybrids a couple years ago, but found that the purchase was simply not economical, even with the gas savings the hybrid would create.

The Town Council's ordinance committee discussed the proposal with Tax Assessor Shelby Jackson earlier this month.

Jackson identified 93 hybrid vehicles in town that would be eligible. If all those received a $1,000 exemption, the town would lose $2,205 in taxes. If they were eligible for a $5,000 exemption, the town would lose $11,025 in taxes.

Councilors are still debating whether to offer the tax exemption to all hybrid car owners in town or just new hybrid car purchasers.

Town staff members are researching whether state law allows the exemption to be given exclusively to future car buyers.

But Democratic councilor Michael Spiteri said a hybrid tax

exemption would have been beneficial four years ago, but not today, when the market appears to be expanding on its own.

"They're selling themselves," he said. "I've got a few neighbors that own them. My brother has been waiting to buy one for a few years now. I haven't heard any bad stories (about them) yet."