By a 4–3 majority, the High Court struck down Victoria's per-kilometre charge on electric vehicles as an excise duty prohibited by s 90. The majority significantly broadened the definition of 'duties of excise', holding that excise is not limited to taxes at the point of production or manufacture but encompasses any tax on goods at any stage — including their use or consumption. The decisive test is whether the tax has a sufficient connection to the goods such that it could affect demand for them. This broad formulation has far-reaching constitutional implications: any State or Territory revenue measure that taxes goods, or taxes an activity in a way that may impact demand for the taxed good or service, risks invalidity under s 90. The decision constrains State fiscal autonomy and reinforces the Commonwealth's exclusive control over indirect taxation of goods.