The Coalition’s Executive Director, Dr. Trish Hendren, was recently interviewed and featured in two series of news clips and articles by WMAR, a television station affiliated with ABC in Baltimore, Maryland. The first series highlights the innovative steps Maryland is taking to address the decline in fuel tax revenue by testing a mileage-based user fee (MBUF) program through a pilot. Additionally, the series refers to the bills (HB1008/SB0557) in the General Assembly that would prohibit the state or a local jurisdiction from imposing fees based on mileage.
In the interview, Dr. Hendren explained the concept behind the MBUF program, stating, “If you use the roads, you pay for the roads. You use the roads more, you pay for the roads more, so it’s really creating that link between use and payment and getting away from the fuel tax as being the way we fund transportation.” The pilot program, which ended on May 31, 2024, involved over 170 drivers who had their mileage reported through various methods, including odometer readings, plug-in devices, vehicle reporting data, or a phone app. Dr. Hendren emphasized the cost to drivers is comparable to the state’s fuel tax.
The articles also highlight the broader implications of declining revenues, with Dr. Hendren stating, “This is not a Maryland issue, this is a transportation issue that every state needs to really think about how we’re going to close that gap.”
The second series of WMAR reports highlights a bill (HB1457) currently under consideration in the General Assembly that would establish a highway use fee while offering drivers the option to participate in a voluntary MBUF program. Dr. Hendren testified on behalf of the bill on March 4, 2025 in a legislative hearing.
“This legislation would replace the newly passed EV registration fee, that surcharge, and would also include those vehicles that are considered high efficient vehicles, which is above 25 [miles per gallon],” explained Dr. Hendren.
The articles acknowledge transportation funding shortages and provide examples of other states that have adopted similar models, with Dr. Hendren stating, “I think the end goal is acknowledging that the fuel tax after 100 years is not going to be our sustainable, reliable transportation funding source, so this legislation is a step towards a new way of funding transportation.”
