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Committee adopts amendment and advances bill to raise registration fees for LPG tanker trucks
Summary
House Bill 504 would raise registration fees for certain liquefied petroleum gas tanker trucks; the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Commission said fees have not changed in decades and would fund online testing and software upgrades. The committee adopted a technical amendment and approved the bill 6–3.
The House Transportation Committee on May 6 advanced House Bill 504, which would increase the registration fee applied to tanker trucks carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The bill’s technical amendment was adopted in committee before a roll-call vote that produced six yeas and three nays.
Representative Coats introduced the bill, saying trucks that carry more than 1,000 gallons must be registered and the commission needs additional revenue for operations. Don Robin, executive director of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Commission, and Chad O’Dea, senior inspector with the commission, told lawmakers the commission is self-funded and has not changed that class fee in decades.
“It's been 32 years since we went from $25 to $50,” O’Dea said, describing a fiscal situation in which fees have not kept pace with costs. The commission said a raised fee would largely pay for software and online testing that would let dealers and inspectors submit and process applications more quickly. O’Dea estimated the per-gallon impact would be negligible, and that most dealers polled supported the change. He told the committee the commission’s work helps other enforcement agencies because their inspections help spot violations before they become serious problems.
Representative Phelps asked about phasing in the increase; witnesses and the sponsor said the commission considered a staggered schedule and that the board might first move to a lower increase before scaling to a higher cap. Representative Wiley asked about revenue: the commission said it sold about 1,800 tags last year, producing roughly $90,000 at the current $50 fee.
Representative Breaux moved to report the bill as amended. Representative Schammerhorn objected; the committee took a roll-call vote and the measure was reported to the floor on a 6–3 vote.
