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March 3, 1999 4:18 PM, EST

The fuel-use taxes collected on toll roads in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and New York amount to illegal double taxation of truckers, according to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.

The group has filed a class-action lawsuit against toll authorities in all four states to stop the practice and get back some of the hundreds of millions of dollars it says the taxes have cost trucking.

Lawsuits filed in the four states contend that charging truckers fuel taxes on roads that already make enough money from other user fees to cover maintenance costs is unfair and unconstitutional.

“OOIDA is committed to overturning this practice of double taxation in the courts,” said Jim Johnston, the association’s president. “The trucking industry has always been willing to pay its fair share of the cost of highways, but the Commerce Clause does not permit states to impose taxes or fees that exceed that which is reasonable and appropriate for the services provided.”

The lawsuits allege that information from the toll authorities shows their roads are self-supporting.

“They receive in excess of the amount of money needed to maintain the toll roads they’re running, and they collect these fuel-use taxes on top of that,” said Todd Spencer, the organization’s executive vice president.

The lawsuits ask the court to prohibit Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and New York from collecting fuel taxes on toll roads. They also seek refunds to truckers who have paid the fuel taxes over the past four years.

Paul D. Cullen Sr., general counsel for OOIDA, said those four states were chosen because they represented the most obvious examples of the problem.

“We’re not saying that there aren’t other states that do this, but we’re starting with these,” he said.

For the full story, see the March 1 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.