GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1997

S	2 

SENATE BILL 886*
Transportation Committee Substitute Adopted 7/14/97

Short Title:  Trucking Adjustment Act of 1997.	(Public)

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Sponsors:

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Referred to:  Finance.

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April 16, 1997

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO ADJUST CERTAIN STATUTES AFFECTING THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY TO ENCOURAGE THE GROWTH OF THAT INDUSTRY THROUGH INCREASED TRUCK REGISTRATIONS IN THIS STATE; TO PROVIDE CONSUMER PROTECTION PROVISIONS; AND TO PROVIDE FOR A STUDY OF CERTAIN TRUCKING RELATED PROVISIONS BY THE LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH COMMISSION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 20-88 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"( l)	The Division shall issue permanent truck and truck-tractor plates and shall include the word 'permanent' on the plate."
Section 2.  G.S. 20-118(c)(5) reads as rewritten:
"(5)	The light-traffic road limitations provided for pursuant to subdivision (b)(4) of this section do not apply to a vehicle while that vehicle is transporting only the following from its point of origin on a light-traffic road to the nearest highway that is not a light-traffic road:
a.	Processed or unprocessed seafood from boats or any other point of origin to a processing plant or a point of further distribution.
b.	Meats or agricultural crop products originating from a farm to first market.
c.	Forest products originating from a farm or from woodlands to first market.
d.	Livestock or poultry from their point of origin to first market.
e.	Livestock by-products or poultry by-products from their point of origin to a rendering plant.
f.	Recyclable material from its point of origin to a scrap-processing facility for processing. As used in this subpart, the terms 'recyclable' and 'processing' have the same meaning as in G.S. 130A-290(a).
g.	Garbage collected by the vehicle from residences or garbage dumpsters if the vehicle is fully enclosed and is designed specifically for collecting, compacting, and hauling garbage from residences or from garbage dumpsters. As used in this subpart, the term 'garbage' does not include hazardous waste as defined in G.S. 130A-290(a), spent nuclear fuel regulated under G.S. 20-167.1, low-level radioactive waste as defined in G.S. 104E-5, or radioactive material as defined in G.S. 104E-5."
Section 3.  G.S. 20-116(d) reads as rewritten:
"(d)	A single vehicle having two or more axles shall not exceed the following lengths of extreme overall dimensions inclusive of front and rear bumpers:
Axles	Length
2	35 feet
3	40 feet
4 or more	45 feet
Provided, however, a bus or motor home with two axles shall not exceed 40 feet in length overall of dimensions inclusive of front and rear bumpers. Provided, further, trucks transporting unprocessed cotton from farm to gin shall not exceed 48 feet in length overall of dimensions inclusive of front and rear bumpers. A truck-tractor and semitrailer shall be regarded as two vehicles for the purpose of determining lawful length and license taxes."
Section 4.  G.S. 20-382.2 reads as rewritten:
"§ 20-382.2. Penalty for failure to comply with registration or insurance verification requirements.
(a)	Acts. – A motor carrier who does any of the following is subject to a civil penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000):
(1)	Operates a for-hire motor vehicle in this State without registering its operations, as required by this Part.
(2)	Operates a for-hire motor vehicle in interstate commerce in this State that does not carry a copy of either an insurance registration receipt issued to the motor carrier or a cab card with an identification stamp issued for the vehicle, as required by G.S. 20-382.
(3)	Operates a for-hire motor vehicle in intrastate commerce in this State for which it has not verified it has insurance, as required by G.S. 20-382.1.
(b)	Payment. – When the Division finds that a for-hire motor vehicle is operated in this State in violation of the registration and insurance verification requirements of this Part, the motor vehicle may not be driven for a purpose other than to park the motor vehicle until the penalty imposed under this section is paid unless the officer that imposes the penalty determines that operation of the motor vehicle will not jeopardize collection of the penalty. A motor carrier that denies liability for a penalty imposed under this section may pay the penalty under protest and apply to the Division for a hearing.
(c)	Hearing. – Upon receiving a request for a hearing, the Commissioner shall schedule a hearing within 30 days after receipt of the request. If after the hearing the Commissioner determines that the motor carrier was not liable for the penalty, the amount collected shall be refunded. If after the hearing the Commissioner determines that the motor carrier was liable for the penalty, the motor carrier may bring an action in the Superior Court of Wake County against the Division for refund of the penalty. A court of this State may not issue a restraining order or an injunction to restrain or enjoin the collection of the penalty or to permit the operation of the vehicle without payment of the penalty.
(d)	Proceeds. – A penalty imposed under this section is payable to the Division. Penalties collected under this section shall be credited to the Highway Fund as nontax revenue."
Section 5.  The Division of Motor Vehicles shall study the feasibility of establishing a staggered registration system for commercial motor vehicles under the International Registration Plan (IRP).  The registration plan shall be coordinated with other states which currently stagger IRP registrations to eliminate, insofar as possible, multiple application dates for the same carrier.  The registration plan shall provide for a smooth transition to the staggered system providing for credits and partial fees, as needed.  The Division shall report the results of this study along with any legislation to implement the staggered registration system to the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee and the Fiscal Research Division by April 1, 1998.
Section 6.  The Legislative Research Commission may study the following issues encouraging the growth of the trucking industry in North Carolina through increased truck registrations:
(1)	The feasibility of removing the highway use tax on vehicles with a gross weight rating of more than 26,000 pounds;
(2)	The replacement of the revenue from the removal of the highway use tax studied in subdivision (1) of this section by an increase in registration fees for the same vehicles by ten cents (10¢) per one hundred pounds of registered weight; and
(3)	Eliminate the stacking of overweight penalties by restricting the penalties so that they do not exceed the highest axle-group weight that exceeds the allowable limits rather than assessing separate penalties for each axle-group and stacking those penalties for the same weight violations.
The Legislative Research Commission may make an interim report of the study authorized by this section to the 1998 Session of the General Assembly and may make a final report to the 1999 Session of the General Assembly.
Section 7.  Sections 5, 6, and 7 of this act are effective when this act becomes law.  Sections 1 through 4 of this act become effective October 1, 1997.