The Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) and its heavy-duty affiliate association, the Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association (HDMA), lauded Reps Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Geoff Davis (R-KY) for re-introducing the Commercial Motor Vehicle Advanced Safety Technology Tax Act of 2009 (HR 2024) recently.
This measure would provide tax credits to help facilitate the accelerated adopting of advanced safety systems for commercial vehicles.
The bill includes these technologies: electronic brake stroke monitoring systems, vehicle stability systems (electronic stability control and roll stability control), lane departure warning systems (with blind spot detection), and collision warning systems (with adaptive cruise control).
The legislation will encompass both the original equipment (OE) and aftermarket installation of these safety systems. It also would:
-
Create a tax credit for fleet owners valued at 50 percent of the retail cost of the system with a maximum of $1,500 per technology.
-
Allow fleets to purchase multiple technologies, but limit the total amount of tax credit permissible to $3,500 per vehicle.
-
Allow the overall tax credit for each truck owner or trucking company of up to $350,000 per year for all covered technology purchases.
“These tax credits will provide the necessary incentive for heavy-duty vehicle operators, especially those that are small- to medium-size companies and independent owner-operators to purchase and install these safety-enhancing technologies in order to protect against traffic fatalities and injuries,” said Tim Kraus, HDMA's president and chief operating officer.