Editorial: Strive for equity in truck fees, taxes

Thursday, Feb. 21, 2002 | 8:38 a.m.

Gov. Kenny Guinn has pointed out an inequity in the trucking industry that the state should study, in fairness to Nevada truckers and state taxpayers as a whole. Before 1989 the state had a "weight-distance" tax that out-of-state truckers paid in lieu of a full vehicle registration fee. In those days, in-state and out-of-state truckers paid about 8 cents a mile in state taxes and fees. When the weight-distance tax was determined inequitable by the courts because it only applied to out-of-staters, Nevada chose not to impose the weight-distance tax on in-state drivers. To compensate, the state increased taxes on diesel fuel and increased registration fees.

Guinn, however, has noted that out-of-state truckers receive hefty discounts on their registration fees. While in-state drivers pay the whole shot -- $17 for every thousand pounds of their trucks' weight -- out-of-state drivers pay fees proportional only to the number of miles they drive in Nevada. We now have a situation where out-of-state drivers pay only about 7 cents a mile in state taxes and fees, while our own drivers pay about 15 cents. It makes sense to us to study the idea of lowering the registration fees and once again imposing a weight-distance tax, perhaps along with an increase in diesel fuel tax. Our drivers would benefit and the state would likely come out ahead in total tax collections. Whatever the final formula, it should be equitable.