When it comes to paying for the maintenance and expansion of our road network, no one should get a free ride.
Truckers lead by example. We represent only four percent of the vehicles on our nation’s highways, yet we pay nearly half the tab into the federal Highway Trust Fund—all while moving over 70 percent of the domestic freight tonnage.
That’s a sharp contrast to freeloading electric cars, which currently do not contribute one cent to the HTF. A new bill authored by Senator Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska) and Congressman Dusty Johnson (R-South Dakota)—the Fair SHARE Act—aims to fix that.
Ninety percent of federal funds used for transportation projects come from the HTF, which primarily receives its revenue through the federal gas tax: 18.3 cents per gallon of gas and 24.3 cents per gallon of diesel. But it faces impending insolvency. Rising fuel efficiency has reduced cash flowing into the coffer, while ballooning inflation has eroded how far each transportation dollar goes. Since 2008, over $275 billion has been shifted from the general fund to ensure the HTF stays afloat.
Keeping our highways in a state of good repair and enhancing capacity requires sustained investments. Current spending nationwide is only about half of what is needed to address all bridge and pavement maintenance costs and address congestion. Electric vehicles that use the same roads as their gas-powered counterparts must be a part of the solution.
The American Trucking Associations has long advocated for a long-term, stable revenue source for the HTF that is paid for equitably. As the largest payer into the HTF, the trucking industry will continue fulfilling our responsibility, but we expect all road users to do the same. Even heavy-duty electric trucks contribute to the HTF through the heavy vehicle use tax, the tire tax, and the federal excise tax.
ATA endorsed the Fair SHARE Act because it takes an important step toward restoring balance in how we fund transportation projects. It would accomplish this by creating a two-tier fee structure for light-duty electric vehicles modeled after the federal gas tax and the heavy vehicle use tax.
Specifically, the bill would:
1) Impose a one-time fee of $1,000 on light-duty electric vehicles at the manufacturer level, and
2) Impose a one-time fee of $550 on each battery module for light-duty electric vehicles with a weight greater than 1,000 pounds.
This amount is roughly the equivalent of what a light-duty internal combustion vehicle pays in gas taxes over its lifetime.
Keeping our infrastructure modernized is key to ensuring that all Americans can get where they need to go safely and efficiently. It is also essential to growing our economy, lowering costs, and creating good jobs. We are eager to work with Senator Fischer and Congressman Johnson to make their proposal a reality and help fairly fund our transportation system.