I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2946 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the excise tax 
on heavy trucks and trailers, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 20, 2017 
Mr. LAMALFA (for himself and Mr. FRANCIS ROONEY of Florida) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal 
the excise tax on heavy trucks and trailers, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Heavy Truck, Tractor, 
and Trailer Retail Federal Excise Tax Repeal Act of 
2017’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that— 
(1) there is a 12-percent Federal retail excise 
tax on certain new heavy trucks, tractors, and trail-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:30 Jun 25, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H2946.IH
H2946
srobinson on DSKBC5CHB2PROD with BILLS
ers, coupled with new regulatory mandates, signifi-
cantly increasing the cost of new heavy-duty trucks, 
tractors, and trailers, and discourages the replace-
ment of older, less environmentally clean and less 
fuel economical vehicles; 
(2) this 12-percent Federal retail excise tax is 
the highest percentage rate of any Federal ad valo-
rem excise tax; 
(3) the Federal excise tax was first levied by 
Congress in 1917 to help finance America’s involve-
ment in World War I; 
(4) in 2016, the average manufacturer sug-
gested retail price for heavy trucks was over 
$175,921; 
(5) the 12-percent Federal retail excise tax rou-
tinely adds between $12,000 and $22,000 to the cost 
of a heavy truck, tractor, or trailer; 
(6) the average in-use, heavy truck is 9.5 years 
old, close to the historical all-time high; 
(7) the Environmental Protection Agency’s 
model year 2002–2010 tailpipe emissions rules ac-
count for $20,000 of the average price of today’s 
new heavy-duty trucks; 
(8) according to the 2011 Environmental Pro-
tection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:30 Jun 25, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H2946.IH
H2946
srobinson on DSKBC5CHB2PROD with BILLS
Administration Regulatory Impact Analysis entitled 
‘‘Final Rulemaking to Establish Greenhouse Gas 
Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards 
for Medium and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles’’, 
model year 2014–2018 EPA-Department of Trans-
portation fuel economy rules will add up to approxi-
mately $6,683 to the price of new heavy-duty trucks; 
(9) according to the 2016 Environmental Pro-
tection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration Final Rule entitled ‘‘Greenhouse Gas 
Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Me-
dium and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles—Phase 
2’’, model year 2021–2027 fuel economy rules will 
add up to approximately $12,500 to the price of new 
heavy-duty trucks; 
(10) the $39,183 average per truck cost of 
these regulatory mandates results in an additional 
$4,700 Federal excise tax, on average; 
(11) since the Federal retail excise tax on cer-
tain new heavy trucks, tractors, and trailers is based 
on annual sales, receipts from the tax deposited in 
the Highway Trust Fund can vary greatly; and 
(12) Congress should consider a more reliable 
and consistent revenue mechanism to protect the 
Highway Trust Fund. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:30 Jun 25, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H2946.IH
H2946
srobinson on DSKBC5CHB2PROD with BILLS
SEC. 3. REPEAL OF EXCISE TAX ON HEAVY TRUCKS AND 
TRAILERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 31 of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 is amended by striking subchapter C 
(and by striking the item relating to such subchapter from 
the table of subchapters for such chapter). 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) Section 4072(c) of such Code is amended to 
read as follows: 
‘‘(c) TIRES OF THE TYPE USED ON HIGHWAY VEHI-
CLES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this part, 
the term ‘tires of the type used on highway vehicles’ 
means tires of the type used on— 
‘‘(A) motor vehicles which are highway ve-
hicles, or 
‘‘(B) vehicles of the type used in connec-
tion with motor vehicles which are highway ve-
hicles. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR MOBILE MACHINERY.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Such term shall not 
include tires of a type used exclusively on mo-
bile machinery. 
‘‘(B) MOBILE MACHINERY.—For purposes 
of subparagraph (A), the term ‘mobile machin-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:30 Jun 25, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H2946.IH
H2946
srobinson on DSKBC5CHB2PROD with BILLS