Rep. Fishbein, House Republicans Petition Bill to Provide Residents and Business with Financial Relief, Force Hearing on Proposal to Eliminate Highway Use Tax

State Representative Craig Fishbein (R-90) joined his House Republican colleagues and signed a petition to enact a parliamentary procedure to circumvent Democrat opposition to a bill that would save inflation-weary businesses and residents money by eliminating the new highway use tax (HUT) on heavyweight trucks.

Republicans were forced to petition to raise H.B. 5290, An Act Eliminating the Highway Use Tax, after the Finance Committee’s Democratic leadership refused to discuss the issue.  On Tuesday, Republicans secured the required 51 signatures to force a public hearing on the bill.

“It’s unfortunate that House Republicans were forced to use a parliamentary procedure to secure a public hearing to discuss eliminating the latest Democrat-pushed tax that exacerbates the increasing costs of goods and services consumers are facing statewide,” Rep. Fishbein said.  “This Democrat tax harms the industries that deliver products across our state and, by extension, the consumers who are forced to pay higher prices on goods, which is why it’s disheartening that they refused to even discuss our proposal. Thankfully, these parliamentary procedures exist to allow for a robust public discussion.”

Representative Fishbein voted against the creation of this tax in 2021, and this session has cosponsored several bills to eliminate it.

Passed by majority-party Democrats in 2021 without a single Republican vote, and with a handful of Democrats voting against, the HUT is levied according to a truck’s weight, classification and number of miles traveled in Connecticut. Targeted truck owners are required to obtain a permit to remit payments to the state, and it’s expected to generate $90 million in annual revenue. The HUT became effective Jan. 1, and businesses subjected to the tax are expected to make their first payments to the state on Feb. 28.

“Before this legislation was adopted, we heard over and over from trucking company owners who warned us of the trickle-down impact of this tax, which will cause residents to pay more for basic services and goods such as groceries,” House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora (R-86) said. “Now that we’ve raised our bill, Democrats who have gotten more comfortable talking about the affordability crisis they helped create should put their money where their mouths are and encourage citizens and business owners in their districts to testify when a hearing date is set.”