ATA Chairman Dellinger Presses Truck Excise Tax Repeal
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WASHINGTON — Chairman Dennis Dellinger on Jan. 22 called on a House panel to repeal a World War I-era excise tax on new trucks.
A repeal of the long-standing 12% tax on commercial vehicles would facilitate upgrades to fleets and enhance safety and efficiency industrywide, the chairman said during a Highways and Transit Subcommittee hearing.
“Initially implemented as a 3% tax to offset the cost of American participation in World War I, this tax has grown to be one of the highest excise taxes on any good in the United States,” Dellinger, CEO of Claremont, N.C.-based Cargo Transporters, told lawmakers as he further emphasized its repeal would reduce the cost of cleaner and safer new model trucks.
“As it adds over $20,000 to the cost of a new $180,000 truck and $6,000 to the cost of a new $50,000 trailer,” the ATA chairman added, “this onerous charge creates a disincentive to putting new equipment that is cleaner and safer than ever before on our nation’s highways.”
During several recent White House administrations, prominent freight stakeholders joined ATA in urging Congress to repeal the tax. At the hearing, the ATA chairman also pressed the panel on the need to expand nationwide access to truck parking. Increasing parking availability is a priority for the trucking industry.
“The lack of available truck parking significantly impacts not only the health and well-being of truck drivers but also driver utilization and efficiency. On average, truck drivers lose approximately $5,500 annually in direct compensation — equivalent to a 12% reduction in yearly pay — due to time spent searching for parking,” Dellinger continued.
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Speaking with Transport Topics prior to the hearing, the ATA chairman stressed the importance of ensuring the nation’s transportation system continues to offer a safe and efficient environment for the freight industry.
“No. 1 is, as I mentioned earlier, fixing the roads that we currently have,” Dellinger said. “The highways and bridges are our workplace … it is a working environment. And so, anything that we do that benefits the consumer, that benefits the motoring public and our drivers from a safety standpoint is very important.”
Recent bipartisan legislation meant to address the industry’s concerns specific to the excise tax and access to truck parking have not been enacted. Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.) is among the transportation policymakers focused on advancing bipartisan truck parking legislation. The congressman said during the hearing: “Many states have indicated they don’t have enough truck parking capacity, which we know affects highway safety, supply chain, efficiency, driver recruitment and retention.”
Jim Tymon, representing state transportation agencies as the executive director of the , reminded lawmakers of economic benefits associated with a well-functioning network of highways.
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“American quality of life and economic mobility depend in large part on the quality and vibrancy of our transportation infrastructure to connect people as well as goods to their destinations safely. A strong transportation system enables American businesses to produce and distribute American agriculture, commodities, materials and products more efficiently and competitively within the United States and to export to the world,” Tymon said.
“In a global economy,” he added, “sound and sustained investment in our nation’s transportation infrastructure is critical to bolstering America’s role in the world economically and politically.”
The subcommittee hearing titled “America Builds: Highways to Move People and Freight” kicked off the Republican-led chamber’s consideration of big-picture updates to the nation’s highways.
Policymakers have less than two years to reauthorize federal surface transportation programs. Arriving at a long-term funding system designed for the federal highway networks is a priority for Congress.
David Bell, CEO of CloneOps.ai, discusses the impact of AI on the trucking industry. Tune in above or by going to .
The federal Highway Trust Fund uses revenue from the fuel tax to assist states with construction and maintenance projects. It is backed by revenue from the federal 18.4 cents-per-gallon tax on gas and 24.4 cents-per-gallon tax on diesel.
“Highway funding relies on a ‘user-pays’ principle,” explained Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-N.C.). “It’s pretty simple: You purchase fuel to fill up your vehicle to use the roads, and our fuel taxes go into the Highway Trust Fund. However, electric vehicles, which are often heavier than their conventional counterparts because of their batteries, do not pay into the Highway Trust Fund.
“It is wholly unfair that an entire segment of users doesn’t contribute to the roads and bridges they use. This won’t address the greater solvency issue, but we must rectify this, so all users are treated fairly and contribute to the systems on which they rely.”
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), the subcommittee’s ranking member, proposed the panel draft a bipartisan highway policy legislation. Doing so, she argued, would help reflect priorities from Congress as well as state officials.
“We should be working together, across the aisle and with the incoming administration, to celebrate the economic and safety benefits of transportation projects,” Norton said. “To ensure these benefits continue to flow to our constituents, we need to engage local partners in the next reauthorization.”
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