OOIDA Call to Action - Utah Members
July 14, 2004

Attention: Utah members! We need your help. Sen. Orrin Hatch has expressed his support of the toll road provision in the highway reauthorization legislation. We need to change his view on this issue!

Below is the message you need to convey to the senator along with the appropriate contact information.

The Honorable Orrin G. Hatch
United States Senate
104 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-4402
Telephone: (202) 224-5251
Telefax: (202) 224-6331

(message/sample letter)

Dear Senator Hatch,

I am very disappointed to learn of your support for converting our interstate highways into toll roads. If this becomes law, my small trucking business would be economically devastated.

The vast majority of trucks in this country are small businesses. Every one of those businesses would be hard hit by this policy and many would not survive.

It is fundamentally dishonest to say you oppose higher fuel taxes but you support collecting tolls on existing interstate highways. This is double taxation that will undermine our highway system, not enhance it.

Most truckers can't afford the existing toll routes. Instead they take alternate, less safe routes. Tolls will increase traffic congestion on these local roads, disrupt communities, and result in higher maintenance costs on roads that were not designed for this increased traffic.

If there must be a tolling program in the final version of the highway bill, Section 1603 of the House bill is the only one that is voluntary and fair.

I'm counting on you, Senator Hatch, to show your support of small trucking businesses by dropping your support for adding tolls to existing interstate highways.

Respectfully,

(your name and address)

You can convey this message via letter, fax or telephone call.

Thanks for your support of our efforts. You may contact the Membership Department at 1-800-444-5791 if you have questions or need additional information.