CVSA praises truck safety tax incentives in US

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) says it actively supports U.S. Senate legislation that would provide a 50 percent tax credit to those who purchase trucks and buses with certain safety technologies installed.

Senate Bill 3428 was introduced just prior to the August recess by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich) and George Voinovich (R-Ohio).

"This bill is the right thing to do. It is about encouraging investment in safety through the purchase and installation of technologies on trucks and buses that have been tested and proven to work," said Stephen F. Campbell, CVSA‘s Executive Director. "It will certainly help reduce heavy truck fatalities which have been hovering around 5,000 per year for the last 10 years."

Specifically, the bill provides tax credits for four safety technologies identified by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) in its recent Large Truck Crash Causation Study. They are: collision avoidance, lane departure warning, stability control, and brake stroke monitoring systems.

The tax credit would be equal to 50 percent of the cost of a qualified system, up to $1500; allow a total credit of up to $3500 per vehicle; limit the qualifying taxpayer to a maximum credit to $350,000 per taxable year; and extend credit eligibility for the purchase of school buses, intercity buses and vehicles used in commerce.

CVSA is an international not-for-profit organization made up of local, state, provincial, territorial and federal motor carrier safety officials and industry representatives from the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Here in Canada, there are no incentives for truck safety technology, although Ottawa could consider giving tax breaks for certain environmental products on commercial vehicles.