Support Policy and Legislation Development (18)
Description:
Supporting policy and legislative development is often necessary to create and pass RUC-enabling legislation. If RUC for commercial motor carriers is planned, separate legislation may be needed for those vehicles.
Details:
Successful bills have included provisions to:
- Create the RUC program and describe its relationship with gas tax.
- Empower agencies to carry out the RUC program.
- Enable the desired vendor market—either through direct procurement, potentially leading to certification, or an open market when the program is sufficiently large.
- Enable enforcement by lead RUC agency.
- Direct funds collected to flow to state treasury.
- Call for oversight and evaluation of the live program.
Primary Use:
Pass RUC-enabling bill.
Best Practices/Lessons Learned:
- Privacy provisions must be included in the bill.
- Legislative champion must understand policy and politics and use as needed to pass the bill.
- Taxes may require a supermajority vote; fees may require simple majority.
- Governors can veto bills, so it is important to have the governor’s support.
- Enabling legislation must direct RUC revenue to a specific use. Unless revenue uses are already constitutionally prescribed, policymakers have choices. Public acceptance tends to improve when RUC revenue is dedicated to investment in roads. Other options for this policy choice are available, including other transportation modes, ancillary transportation investments (such as charging stations for electric vehicles), and general uses.
State Government Context and Assumptions:
Legislators and legislative champions complete this task with lead RUC agency and task force support.