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Stakeholders pitch road funding ideas
By Jill Dunn
The American Trucking Associations supported the federal fuel tax as the best long-term highway financing mechanism during testimony for a congressional hearing on improving funding for highways and infrastructure.
The current omnibus transportation funding bill expires Sept. 30 and the Highway Trust Fund is expected to fall short of money before then.
Barbara Windsor represented the ATA in backing a fuel tax increase with additional money invested in infrastructure during the July 23 hearing before the Select Revenue Measures committee, a Ways and Means subcommittee.
”With collection costs at just 0.2 percent of revenue, no alternative funding schemes can match the efficiency or equitability of the federal fuel tax,” said Windsor, who heads Maryland-based Hahn Transportation.
Funding schemes such as tolling, vehicle miles traveled taxes or public-private partnerships “do not stand up to the criteria for viable highway funding and provide a minimal return on the highway user’s investment,” she said.
Trucking pays 33 percent of state and federal highway user fees, but only logs 14 percent of annual vehicle miles traveled on highways. Trucks also contribute funding through a heavy vehicle use tax paid on all trucks weighing more than 55,000 pounds, the trucks and trailers sales tax, and tire tax on tires sold
U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn. noted several methods of long-term funding, but said the fuel tax should not be raised during this recession.
The House transportation committee chairman listed long-term funding mechanisms, including increasing the per-barrel fee for crude oil and fuel from 8 cents to $1 and taxing speculative trading of crude oil futures.
He also the discussed the findings of commissions established by the current transportation act on highway and infrastructure funding, including a heavy vehicle use tax increase. The groups suggested increasing this fee for vehicles weighing at least 55,000 pounds, from $100 to $200 and $22 to $44 for every 1,000 pounds after that.
AAA President Robert Darbelnet said the organization advocated a gas tax increase, but should fix problems with the VMT system before going that way for taxation. He advocated offering a tolled road as an alternative to existing congested roads but not congestion pricing.
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