Congressmen from both sides of the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a bill to repeal the federal excise tax on heavy trucks, truck bodies, and trailers.
Congressmen Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) with original co-sponsors Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), Tom O’Halleran (D-Ariz.), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), and Greg Pence (R-Ind.) introduced the legislation on April 29. That same day, it was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means, according to Congress.gov. As of June 8, no other action had been taken on the bill.
(Pence, by the way, is the brother of Vice-president Mike Pence.)
Called H.R. 2381, the Modern Clean, and Safe Trucks Act of 2019, it would repeal a tax originally enacted in 1917 to help finance the First World War, according to the National Truck Equipment Association. The tax “now serves as an unstable revenue source for the Highway Trust Fund,” the NTEA said.
The NTEA is appealing to its members to contact their Congressional representatives to ask them to support H.R. 2381. The association has posted a sample letter on its website, www.ntea.com.
Eliminating the 12 percent tax would “allow purchasers to more readily integrate cleaner and safer vehicles into their fleet,” the NTEA notice said. “Additionally, repeal would clear the way to better alternative funding mechanisms for highway repair and maintenance.”