New Mexico Unveils Plan To Recover $56 Million In Lost Trucker Fees

The New Mexico Department of Transportation is asking lawmakers to support a new plan that they say will help them recover $56 million in lost revenue from truck drivers every year.

Transportation officials have long suspected that truck driver do not always purchase the state’s permits that are required for any truck over 26,000 pounds. They say that many truckers choose to run the risk of getting caught without a permit rather than wait in line at a weigh station to purchase one.

The plan is to staff the state’s weigh stations with DOT employees instead of state police. This would free up motor transit officers to perform more inspections and enforce permit purchase.

The proposed plan also includes a measure to expand the online permitting system.

The New Mexico DOT needs $862 million for construction and maintenance projects this year, but their budget is only $395 million.

Sources:
The Washington Times
Alamogordo Daily News
The Santa Fe New Mexican