Ensign introduces bill to revise truck fuel tax

Benjamin Grove

Friday, Jan. 28, 2005 | 8:25 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., introduced a bill to benefit the concrete industry on Wednesday. The legislation would change a tax "inequity" that affects owners of ready-mixed concrete and sanitation trucks.

Dual-use vehicle owners pay fuel taxes for all the fuel they consume -- both the fuel used for driving and the fuel used for operating a "secondary" truck function, such as a mixer drum or dumpster hoist.

Thanks to new technologies, one engine is commonly used to both drive the truck and the other operations, which is good for the environment, Ensign said.

But the industry sees no tax benefit, Ensign said. Industry officials say it's not fair that they pay a gas tax that is used to fund highway projects when some of the fuel they consume is used for off-highway "secondary" purposes.

The federal tax code is designed to include a fuel tax exemption for "off- highway" use, Ensign said. But the Internal Revenue Service is not enforcing the code consistent with the intent of Congress, Ensign said.

"This is the wrong approach, especially in Nevada, where our construction industry is a critical part of our booming economy," Ensign said.

Ensign's legislation proposes a $250 annual per-vehicle tax credit.

The 75-year-old, Maryland-based National Ready Mixed Concrete Association asked Ensign for his help on the issue. The association approached Ensign because he has supported the bill in the past, association spokeswoman Jennifer LeFevre said. The total cost to the government would be an estimated $30 million, she said.

The association last donated to Ensign's political campaign in 2000, when Ensign last ran for office, giving him $4,006, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks campaign cash. The association gave money to Nevada's other four lawmakers in Congress last year: Democratic Sen. Harry Reid ($1,000); Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley ($1,500); and Republican Reps. Jim Gibbons ($4,000); and Jon Porter ($3,500).