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Senate bill includes tax credit for idling reduction

A U.S. Senate proposal would give truck owners tax credits for up to half the purchase price of idle-reduction technologies.

Mike Joyce, OOIDA director of government affairs, said the Association worked closely with Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-NM, as the senator developed a package of advanced energy tax incentives for Senate Bill 3935.

S3935, which was introduced Sept. 29, would allow tax credits ranging from $800 to $5,000 based partially on the percentage of the purchase price of an APU or other idle-reduction technology, and the efficiency of the unit.

Joyce said the senator understands the importance of providing an incentive for idle-reduction technologies.

“With an expensive price tag, these technologies are not the primary investment truckers will make given the state of the economy,” Joyce told Land Line . “So these incentives may offer encouragement to truckers to make such a purchase.”

Sen. Bingaman is an important player in the Senate, Joyce said. Aside from chairing the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, he is on the Senate Finance Committee, which handles tax-related legislation. He also chairs the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources and Infrastructure.

“We think there is a chance that Sen. Bingaman’s bill could be taken up in a lame-duck session of Congress after the November elections,” Joyce said.

Joyce said OOIDA appreciates support of the tax incentive from Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-ME. Sen. Snowe has co-sponsored the bill.

The OOIDA government affairs staff has met with the staff of Sen. Max Baucus, D-MT, to encourage including the tax incentive for idle-reduction equipment in any potential tax legislation the Senate may consider following the November election. Baucus is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

If approved, the tax incentives are designed with a tiered approach that would help purchasers of the most efficient equipment receive more money.

Idle-reduction units that provide cooling systems and consume the equivalent of 0.10 gallons of diesel per hour are eligible for a tax credit of 50 percent of the unit’s purchase price up to $5,000. Units that range from 0.10 to 0.15 are eligible for up to $4,000, and units that use 0.15 to 0.25 gallons per hour are eligible for 30 percent, or $3,000.

Units that don’t provide cooling, such as heaters or electricity generating units are eligible for up to $1,000 in tax credits if they consume 0.04 gallons of diesel per hour, or $800 if they consume between 0.04 and 0.06.

A bill with some differences was introduced in the House last year by Congressman Earl Blumenauer, D-OR.

House Resolution 3383 provides a blanket 50 percent tax credit up to $3,000 for the purchase of idle-reduction technology.

“With idle-reduction tax credit bills in both the House and Senate, members of Congress acknowledge that this is an incentive that might be worth exploring,” Joyce said.

“We’ve got support from members of both the House and Senate. They acknowledge that these tax incentives are a step in the right direction toward supporting truckers and technology that reduces our consumption of foreign oil.”

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