Bill Text: WV HB4016 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requiring motor vehicles safety inspections every three years instead of each year
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 11-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-09 - To House Technology and Infrastructure [HB4016 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2020-HB4016-Introduced.html
WEST virginia legislature
2020 regular session
Introduced
House Bill 4016
By Delegates Higginbotham, Hanna, Barnhart, Little, Foster, Hamrick, Porterfield, D. Kelly, Fast, Criss and J. Jeffries
[Introduced January 09, 2020; Referred to the Committee on Technology and Infrastructure then Finance]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17A-10-3a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §17C-16-4, §17C-16-5 and §17C-16-6 of said code, all relating to changing annual mandatory state inspections of motor vehicles, trailers, semitrailers, and pole trailers to mandatory inspections every three years; adjusting inspection sticker fee and charge for vehicle inspections; and providing operative date of amendments.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
CHAPTER 17A. MOTOR VEHICLE ADMINISTRATION, REGISTRATION, CERTIFICATE OF TITLE, AND ANTITHEFT PROVISIONS.
ARTICLE 10. FEES FOR REGISTRATION, LICENSING, ETC.
§17A-10-3a. Special registration of antique motor vehicles and motorcycles; definition, registration, and use of classic motor vehicles and classic motorcycles; customized antique plates.
(a) The annual registration fee for any antique motor vehicle or motorcycle as defined in this section is $2. As used in this section:
“Antique motor vehicle” means any motor vehicle which is more than 25 years old and is owned solely as a collector’s item.
“Antique motorcycle” means any motorcycle which is more than 25 years old and is owned solely as a collector’s item.
“Classic motor vehicle” means a motor vehicle which is more than 25 years old and is registered pursuant to §17A-10-3 of this code and is used for general transportation.
“Classic motorcycle” means a motorcycle which is more than 25 years old and is registered pursuant to §17A-10-3 of this code and is used for general transportation.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, antique motor vehicles or motorcycles may not be used for general transportation but may only be used for:
(1) Participation in club activities, exhibits, tours, parades, and similar events;
(2) The purpose of testing their operation, obtaining repairs or maintenance, and transportation to and from events as described in subdivision (1) of this subsection; and
(3) Recreational purposes over weekends, beginning on Friday at 12:00 p.m., and ending on the following Monday at 12:00 p.m., and on holidays: Provided, That a classic motor vehicle or a classic motorcycle as defined in this section may be registered under the applicable class at the applicable registration fee set forth in §17A-10-3 of this code and may be used for general transportation.
(c) A West Virginia motor vehicle or motorcycle displaying license plates of the same year of issue as the model year of the antique motor vehicle or motorcycle, as authorized in this section, may be used for general transportation purposes if the following conditions are met:
(1) The license plate’s physical condition has been inspected and approved by the Division of Motor Vehicles;
(2) The license plate is registered to the specific motor vehicle or motorcycle by the Division of Motor Vehicles;
(3) The owner of the motor vehicle or motorcycle annually registers the motor vehicle or motorcycle and pays an annual registration fee for the motor vehicle or motorcycle equal to that charged to obtain regular state license plates;
(4) The motor vehicle or motorcycle passes an
annual safety inspection a safety
inspection every three years; and
(5) The motor vehicle or motorcycle displays a sticker attached to the license plate, issued by the division, indicating that the motor vehicle or motorcycle may be used for general transportation.
(d) If more than one request is made for license plates having the same number, the division shall accept only the first application.
(e) The commissioner may propose rules for legislative approval in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq. of this code as may be necessary or convenient for the carrying out of the provisions of this section.
(f) Upon appropriate application, together with a special annual fee of $40, which is in addition to all other fees required by this chapter, there shall be issued to the owner of an antique motor vehicle a special registration plate for an antique motor vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant, bearing a combination of letters or numbers requested by that applicant, subject to the approval by the commissioner, and with the maximum number of letters or numbers to be determined by the commissioner.
CHAPTER 17C. TRAFFIC REGULATIONS AND LAWS OF THE ROAD.
ARTICLE 16. INSPECTION OF VEHICLES.
§17C-16-4. Superintendent of the West Virginia State Police to require periodical inspection; acceptance of certificate of inspection from another state; suspension of registration of unsafe vehicles.
(a) The superintendent of
the West Virginia State Police shall once each year require that every motor vehicle,
trailer, semitrailer, and pole trailer registered in this state be inspected once
every three years and that an official certificate of
inspection and approval be obtained for each vehicle.
The inspections shall be made and the certificates obtained with respect to the mechanism, brakes, and equipment of every vehicle designated by the superintendent.
The superintendent may make necessary rules for the administration and enforcement of this section and may designate any period or periods during which owners of any vehicles, subject to this section, shall display upon the vehicles certificates of inspection and approval or shall produce the certificates upon demand of any officer or employee of the State Police designated by the superintendent or any police or peace officer when authorized by the superintendent.
(b) The superintendent may authorize the acceptance in this state of a certificate of inspection and approval issued in another state having an inspection law similar to this chapter and may extend the time within which the resident owner of a vehicle which was not in this state during the time an inspection was required must obtain a certificate.
(c) At the request of the superintendent, the commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles may suspend the registration of any vehicle which the superintendent determines is in such an unsafe condition that it constitutes a menace to safety or which after notice and demand is not equipped as required in this chapter or for which the vehicle’s owner has not obtained the required certificate.
(d) If requested by the owner of the vehicle, the superintendent shall also cause to be inspected a Class A farm use motor vehicle exempt from annual registration certificate and licensing as provided in §17A-3-2 of this code. If the Class A farm use motor vehicle passes the inspection, the superintendent shall cause a certificate of inspection to be issued for that vehicle.
§17C-16-5. Permit for official inspection stations; fees for and certificate of inspection.
(a) The superintendent of the State Police is
responsible for the inspection as provided in this article and shall prescribe
requirements and qualifications for official inspection stations. He or she
shall select and designate the stations and shall issue permits for official
inspection stations and furnish instructions and all necessary forms for the
inspection of vehicles as required in this article and the issuance of official
certificates of inspection and approval. The certificate of inspection shall be
a paper sticker or decal to be affixed to the windshield of a motor vehicle,
shall be serially numbered and shall properly identify the official inspection
station which issued it. A charge of $3 $6 per sticker shall be
charged by the State Police to the inspection station, and the funds received
shall be deposited into the State Treasury and credited to the account of the
State Police for application in the administration and enforcement of the
provisions of this article and for the purchase of vehicles, equipment for
vehicles, and maintenance of vehicles. The superintendent may exchange stickers
or make refunds to official inspection stations for stickers on hand when
permits are revoked or when, for any reason, the stickers become obsolete.
(b) A person shall apply for a permit upon an official form prescribed by the superintendent and the superintendent shall grant permits only when the superintendent is satisfied that the station is properly equipped and has competent personnel to make the inspections and adjustments and that the inspections and adjustments will be properly conducted. The superintendent, before issuing a permit, may require the applicant to file a bond with surety approved by the superintendent, conditioned that such applicant, as a station operator, will make compensation for any damage to a vehicle during an inspection or adjustment due to negligence on the part of the station operator or employees thereof.
(c) The superintendent shall properly supervise and cause inspections to be made of the stations. Upon finding that a station is not properly equipped or conducted, the superintendent may, upon a first violation, suspend the permit for a period of up to one year. Upon a second or subsequent finding that a station is not properly equipped or conducted, the superintendent shall permanently revoke and require the surrender of the permit. The superintendent may reinstate the permit of any person whose permit was permanently revoked prior to the effective date of this section upon a first finding that a station was not properly equipped or conducted, upon application, at any time after the expiration of six months from the time of revocation and shall reinstate the permit, upon application, after the expiration of one year. He or she shall maintain and post at his or her office and at any other places as he or she may select lists of all stations holding permits and of those whose permits have been suspended or revoked.
(d) The amendments to this section enacted during 2020 shall be operative beginning on and after January 1, 2021.
§17C-16-6. Assignment, transfer and posting of official inspection station permit; issuance and record of certificate of inspection; inspection fee.
(a) No permit for an official inspection station shall be assigned or transferred or used at any location other than designated in the permit and every permit shall be posted in a conspicuous place at the station location designated in the permit.
(b) The person operating the station shall issue a certificate of inspection and approval, upon an official form, to the owner of a vehicle upon inspecting the vehicle and determining that its equipment required under this article is in good condition and proper adjustment, but otherwise no certificate shall be issued, except one issued pursuant to §17C-16-2 of this code. When required by the superintendent, a record and report shall be made of every inspection and every certificate issued.
(c) A fee of not more than $14
$28 may be charged for an inspection and any necessary headlight
adjustment to proper focus, not including any replacement parts required, and
the issuance of the certificate, but the imposition of the charge is not
mandatory.
(d) The amendments to this section enacted during 2020 shall be operative beginning on and after January 1, 2021.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require safety inspections every three years instead of each year.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
