The Alabama Trucking Association supports state legislation that would require trailer owners to buy a permanent trailer tag rather than an annual trailer tag. The Alabama House passed the bill unanimously.
Most states, including Alabama’s neighbors, don’t have the annual requirement, says Frank Filgo, president of the association. Retagging trailers that are in transit is an undue burden, Filgo says. The bill would replace the annual $20 trailer tag with a $60 tag good for the life of the trailer. The association estimates average trailer life at eight years, so the change in pricing would cost Alabama nearly $1.1 million annually.
The bill contains language that would allow the state to recover that lost revenue with a 4 percent increase in truck registration fees for gross vehicle weights more than 73,281 pounds, or Class 8 and 9. “You’re saving on the trailer and putting it on the tractor,” Filgo says. “The bonus is the savings in time and expense.”
