HEAVY TRAFFIC FEES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 June 1939, Page 3

HEAVY TRAFFIC FEES

CHARGE ON FARMERS’ LORRIES REPLY TO COUNTY COUNCIL INQUIRY. POSITION SOMEWHAT INDEFINITE. Heavy traffic licence fees, and the manner in which they affect the dairy farmer are again to the fore, and at yesterday's meeting of Masterton County Council the Commissioner ol Transport, in reply to the council’s inquiry, wrote that heavy traffic fees remained the property of the local authorities within the respective heavy traffic districts, and that this matter came up for review when the Department arranged for the appointment of its own traffic inspectors, as in some of the districts, county councils had refrained from collecting the fees from farmers who were carrying their own goods. As a result it had been decided that when farmers were found carting their own goods without the authority of a heavy traffic license, the respective local authority was requested to state whether or not it desired the Department to prosecute and no such prosecution was taken without the consent of the local authority. The question of altering the law so as to exempt farmers’ motor lorries from heavy traffic fees, either wholly or in part, had been brought before the Government on many occasions, and was receiving consideration in connection with a review of motor taxation which was at present taking place. So that the councillors might understand the position even more fully, the Clerk read the following article taken from the latest issue of “Transport News”: —

“Yielding to pressure from the Dominion executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, the Minister of Transport (the Hon it. Semple), some time ago stated that the local bodies had discretionary powers to improve the tax on farm lorries according to circumstances. The farmers have, however, apparently pressed for a more definite statement of the position and recently Mr Semple advised the Union that the Minister of Finance would not agree to’ an abandonment of the tax, so that, as far as the law stood, farmers were equally liable with other owners of heavy vehicles. Mr Semple explained, however, that the Government had instructed local authorities that the question of the collection of heavy traffic fees on bona fide farmers’ vehicles would be left to their discretion, and that the Government would not interfere in any way. The responsibility was placed on local bodies to give what relief they saw fit in connection with farmers’ trucks or lorries used for the purpose of carting their own produce. “The Government’s action is truly remarkable and it becomes increasingly evident that the principles of local option in a matter of this sort is quite unsuited to the requirements. “A still more remarkable thing is that apparently the local bodies have had no official intimation and rely only on reported statements for an explanation of their obligations and responsibilities. “There now arises another important consideration. If a local body does remit these fees to all farmer-owners of trucks, will the Audit Department probe the question when the yearly accounts are under review? If, at the close of a financial year, the local body had a debit balance in its accounts'.it could easily happen that the remission of fees would require official if not statutory sanction, before the members of the local body concerned would be able to claim freedom from their individual liability. “The effect, also, of a remission of fees by one local body or the pool of fees by the grouped local bodies has already been raised. It is one for which no adequate solution has yet been found. “Without a doubt there is urgent need for an overhaul of the whole system of heavy traffic fees, but the introduction of the principles of local option is tending to aggravate an already difficult situation. “It seems that here again the Government is pandering to the political interest and is doing so in a very shortsighted manner. The conditions of a local option are quite unsuited. It will make the anomalies more glaring. Bul if it is true that no official direction has been given to the local bodies then it seems clear beyond doubt that the Government is indefinite and timid in its treatment of a question which is very positive in its application and definite in its results.”

Councillor J. W. Colquhoun: “I am definitely- of the opinion that if anything can be done to assist the farmer in this question it should be.”