SCS/SB 89 - This act enacts provisions relating to transportation.MOTOR VEHICLE RENTAL AND LEASING (Sections 144.070 and 301.032)
This act requires entities engaged in the business of renting or leasing motor vehicles, trailers, boats, or outboard motors to pay an annual fee of $250 to the Director of the Department of Revenue. (Section 144.070.5)
Applicants to be a leasing or rental company shall post a bond or irrevocable letter of credit with the state in the sum of $100,000, which shall be conditioned upon the entity complying with the laws applicable to leasing or rental companies, and shall be an indemnity for any loss caused by actions that are grounds for actions against the entity's license. Proceeds shall be paid from the bond or irrevocable letter of credit upon receipt by the Department of a final judgment of a Missouri court of competent jurisdiction against the bonded entity. (Section 144.070.6)
The act provides that entities engaged in the business of renting or leasing 3500 or more motor vehicles that are to be used exclusively for rental and leasing, and not for resale, and which have applied to the Department for a license as specified in the act may also operate as a registered fleet owner as specified by law. (Section 144.070.9)
Entities engaged in the business of renting or leasing 3500 or more motor vehicles that are to be used exclusively for rental and leasing and not for resale, and which have applied to the Department for a license as specified in the act may operate as a registered fleet owner as provided by law. The Director of Revenue may issue fleet vehicle license plates in lieu of standard vehicle registrations after application and payment of annual fees of $360 for the first 10 plates and $36 for each additional plate. Fleet vehicles registered under the act shall not be exempted from safety or emissions inspections, but the inspections shall not be required to be presented to the Director. (Section 301.032.6)
Vehicle rental or leasing companies licensed by the Department under the act operating as registered fleet owners shall annually or biennially register their fleets with the Director of Revenue as specified in the act in lieu of registering the vehicles individually. (Section 301.032.7)
Applicants shall provide proof of insurance coverage, as required by law, prior to issuance of fleet vehicle license plates by the Director. (Section 301.032.8)
Authority to operate as a fleet owner shall expire on January 1 of each licensure period for entities licensed under the act to operate as vehicle rental or leasing companies. (Section 301.032.9)
Vehicle rental or leasing companies licensed by the Department under the act shall make available upon request by the Director or any law enforcement agency any corresponding vehicle or registration information that is requested as prescribed by rule. (Section 301.032.10)
These provisions are identical to the House perfected HCS#2/HB 626 (2019), provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS/SB 368 (2019), provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS#2/HCS/SCS/SB 147 (2019), provisions in HCS/SB 371, and are similar to SB 505 (2019).
VEHICLE INSPECTIONS (Sections 301.020, 301.191, and 307.350)
Currently, the Department of Revenue collects odometer information for motor vehicles 5 years old or less, and retains this information for a period of 5 years. This act modifies this requirement to specify that the Department shall collect odometer information for motor vehicles aged 10 years or less with fewer than 150,000 miles on the odometer, and retain the information for a period of 10 years. (Section 301.020)
The act also modifies homemade trailer inspection requirements by making the requirement applicable to all homemade trailers, rather than only to homemade trailers over 16 feet in length, and by raising the inspection fee from 10 dollars to 25 dollars. (Section 301.191)
Currently, motor vehicles are exempt from biennial mechanical inspection requirements for a period of five years following their model year. This act instead exempts motor vehicles for a period of 10 years following their model year, provided the vehicle has fewer than 150,000 miles on the odometer. (Section 307.350)
These provisions are identical to the House perfected HCS#2/HB 451 (2019), provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS#2/HCS/SCS/SB 147 (2019), and similar to SB 359 (2019), SB 381 (2019), and HB 1444 (2018).
COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSES (Sections 302.170, 302.720, and 302.768)
This act adds test score documents from Missouri commercial third-party tester examiners to an exemption from the prohibition against retaining certain driver's license application materials. (Section 302.170.3(2)). The act specifies that skills and written test waiver documents may be retained for commercial driver's instruction permits in addition to commercial driver's license applicants. (Section 302.170.3(5))
The act provides that commercial driver's instruction permits shall be nonrenewable, and lengthens, from 6 months to 1 year, the period for which the permits are valid. This act increases, from 5 dollars to 10 dollars, the fee for a commercial driver's instruction permit, and specifies that the fee for a duplicate shall be 5 dollars. This act also repeals a provision allowing for the issuance of a 30-day commercial driver's instruction permit. (Section 302.720.1)
The act specifies that applicants for a commercial driver's license shall complete an entry-level driver training program as required under federal law. (Section 302.720.2)
The Director of Revenue currently has the authority to waive the driving skills test for a commercial driver's license for qualified military applicants. This act allows the Director of Revenue to also waive the written test, and to waive the skills and written tests for commercial driver's instruction permits. The act repeals the list of specific requirements an applicant must certify he or she meets, and specifies that the applicant shall meet all federal and state qualifications and shall be required to complete applicable tests that are not waived. (Section 302.720.2(5))
Beginning December 1, 2019, the Department of Revenue shall certify as a third-party tester any private education institution or other private entity, provided the necessary qualifications are met. (Section 302.720.6)
This act provides for the use of an electronic verification system, approved by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, to receive medical examiner's certificates for commercial driver's license issuance. (Section 302.768.3)
These provisions are similar to provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS#2/HCS/SCS/SB 147 (2019), provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS/SB 368 (2019), provisions in HB 792 (2019), SB 290 (2019), and SB 378 (2019).
ACCIDENTS OCCURRING IN WORK OR EMERGENCY ZONES (Sections 304.580, 304.585, and 304.894)
This act requires the Director of the Department of Revenue to revoke a driver's license upon notification by a law enforcement officer that an individual was involved in a physical accident where his or her negligence contributed to his or her vehicle striking a worker or highway worker, as defined in the act, within a properly designated construction or work zone (Section 304.585), or substantially contributed to his or her vehicle striking an emergency responder within a properly designated active emergency zone (Section 304.894). The Department shall base its determination of these facts on the report of the law enforcement officer investigating the incident, and its determination shall be final except as specified in the act. Required notice of the revocation shall be deemed received by the driver three days after mailing unless returned by the postal authorities. The notice shall clearly state the reason and statutory grounds for the revocation, the effective date of the revocation, the right to request a hearing, and the date by which the request must be made. The revocation shall be effective not sooner than 15 days from the Department's order.
Individuals who received notice of driver's license revocation may apply for immediate reinstatement by retaking and passing the written and driving portions of the driver's examination, or may petition the circuit court in the county in which the accident occurred. The revocation may be stayed pending the outcome of the case, as specified in the act. The county prosecutor shall act on behalf of the Director of Revenue at the hearing. The hearing shall determine only whether the person was involved in a highway accident when a worker or emergency responder was hit, whether applicable guidelines for notice and signage were properly implemented, and whether the investigating officer had probable cause to believe the person's negligence contributed to the vehicle striking a highway worker or substantially contributed to the vehicle striking an emergency responder. If the court determines any of these conditions to not be satisfied, the court shall order the Director to reinstate the individual's license.
Administrative rulings to reinstate a license under these provisions, and any related evidence, shall not be subject to subpoena or otherwise discoverable in any administrative, civil, or criminal case.
These provisions are identical to provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS/SS/HCS#2/HB 499 (2019) and HCS/SB 371 (2019), and similar to SCS/SB 254 (2019) and HCS/HB 2287 (2018).
ERIC VANDER WEERD