Making its way through the capitol building right now is a proposed plan that’s become known as Cash for Clunkers. If passed, the program could offer up to $4500 to people willing to retire their older, less fuel efficient vehicles in order to purchase a new greener and cleaner vehicle. It’s just one more incentive to get people back onto dealer’s lots in an attempt to help jump start an economy moving slower than the cars the proposed bill hopes to replace. But scrapping cars only helps those who already have jobs and can afford to buy a new car.

This is a great plan for automakers who need to move product at a time when companies like Toyota and Honda, who until recently didn’t even know what red ink looked like, are having to adjust production to compensate for the economic downturn. It’s also a great plan for those who can afford to buy a new car, after all, $4500 is still nothing to sneeze at, and many households still have that third car that’s only used when one of the others are in the shop, or have one fairly new car and one older car that they have been waiting for the economy to pick up before replacing.

But there are many people who can’t afford to buy a new automobile—people who are part of the escalating unemployment rate, or have found new jobs, but with incomes much lower than what their pre-economic crisis lifestyles required. Many families can’t afford a car payment no matter how big the incentive and rely on inexpensive vehicles for their transportation needs. This bill essentially eliminates those low priced vehicles from the market by establishing the base price of a cheap used car at $4500.

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