AN ACT
RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLES; CHANGING
SPECIAL PERMIT REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MOVEMENT OF OVERSIZE MOTOR VEHICLES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF
THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1. Section 66-1-4.17 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1990,
Chapter 120, Section 18, as amended) is amended to read:
"66-1-4.17. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Motor Vehicle
Code:
A. "tank vehicle" means a motor
vehicle that is designed to transport any liquid or gaseous material within a
tank that is either permanently or temporarily attached to the vehicle or the
chassis and that has either a gross vehicle weight rating of twenty-six
thousand one or more pounds or is used in the transportation of hazardous
materials requiring placarding of the vehicle under applicable law;
B. "taxicab" means a motor vehicle
used for hire in the transportation of persons, having a normal seating capacity
of not more than seven persons;
C. "through highway" means every
highway or portion thereof at the entrance to which vehicular traffic from
intersecting highways is required by law to stop before entering or crossing it
when stop signs are erected as provided in the Motor Vehicle Code;
D. "title service company" means a
person, other than the department, an agent of the department, a licensed
dealer or the motor transportation division of the department of public safety,
who for consideration issues temporary registration plates or prepares and
submits to the department on behalf of others applications for registration of
or title to motor vehicles;
E. "traffic" means pedestrians, ridden
or herded animals, vehicles and other conveyances either singly or together
using any highway for purposes of travel;
F. "traffic-control signal" means any
device, whether manually, electrically or mechanically operated, by which
traffic is alternately directed to stop and to proceed;
G. "traffic safety bureau" means the
traffic safety bureau of the state highway and transportation department;
H. "trailer" means any vehicle without
motive power, designed for carrying persons or property and for being drawn by
a motor vehicle, and so constructed that no significant part of its weight
rests upon the towing vehicle;
I. "transportation inspector" means an
employee of the motor transportation division of the department of public
safety who has been certified by the director of the division to enter upon and
perform inspections of motor carriers' vehicles in operation;
J. "transporter of manufactured homes"
means a commercial motor vehicle operation engaged in the business of
transporting manufactured homes from the manufacturer's location to the first
dealer's location. A "transporter
of manufactured homes" may or may not be associated with or affiliated
with a particular manufacturer or dealer;
K. "travel trailer" means a trailer
with a camping body and includes recreational travel trailers and camping
trailers;
L. "trial court" means the magistrate,
municipal or district court that tries the case concerning an alleged violation
of a provision of the Motor Vehicle Code;
M. "truck" means every motor vehicle
designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation of property;
N. "truck camper" means a camping body
designed to be loaded onto, or affixed to, the bed or chassis of a truck. A camping body, when combined with a truck or
truck cab and chassis, even though not attached permanently, becomes a part of
the motor vehicle, and together they are a recreational unit to be known as a
"truck camper"; there are three general types of truck campers:
(1) "slide-in camper" means a camping
body designed to be loaded onto and unloaded from the bed of a pickup truck;
(2) "chassis-mount camper" means a
camping body designed to be affixed to a truck cab and chassis; and
(3) "pickup cover" or "camper
shell" means a camping body designed to provide an all-weather protective
enclosure over the bed of a pickup truck and to be affixed thereto; and
O. "truck tractor" means every motor
vehicle designed and used primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so
constructed as to carry a load other than a part of the weight of the vehicle
and load so drawn."
Section 2. Section 66-7-411 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978,
Chapter 35, Section 482, as amended) is amended to read:
"66-7-411. AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE MAY WEIGH VEHICLES
AND REQUIRE REMOVAL OF EXCESS LOADS--GRADUATED PENALTIES.--
A.
Any police officer with the motor transportation division or New Mexico
state police division of the department of public safety, having reason to
believe that the weight of a vehicle and load is unlawful, may require the
driver to stop and submit to weighing of the vehicle and load by means of
either portable or stationary scales and may require the vehicle to be driven
to the nearest scales approved by the department of public safety if the scales
are within five miles.
B.
When a police officer with the motor transportation division or New
Mexico state police division of the department of the public safety or a
transportation inspector, upon weighing a vehicle or combination, determines
that the gross vehicle weight or combination gross vehicle weight exceeds the
maximum authorized by Sections 66-7-409 and 66-7-410 NMSA 1978, the officer or
inspector shall require the driver or owner of the vehicle or combination to
unload that portion of the load necessary to decrease the gross vehicle weight
or combination gross vehicle weight to the authorized maximum.
C.
Any driver of a vehicle who fails or refuses to stop and submit the
vehicle and load to weighing or who fails or refuses, when directed by a duly
authorized police officer with the motor transportation division or New Mexico
state police division of the department of public safety or a transportation
inspector, upon a weighing of the vehicle, to unload the vehicle and otherwise
comply with the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.
D.
Any shipper or any other person loading the vehicle who intentionally
overloads a vehicle which he has reason to believe will travel in that
condition upon a public highway is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined
in accordance with Subsection E of this section.
E.
In all cases of violations of weight limitations, the penalties shall be
assessed and imposed in accordance with the following schedule:
WEIGHT OF EXCESS
LOAD IN POUNDS AMOUNT OF FINE
1 to 3,000 twenty-five dollars ($25.00)
3,001 to 4,000 forty dollars ($40.00)
4,001 to 5,000 seventy-five dollars ($75.00)
5,001 to 6,000 one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125)
6,001 to 7,000 two hundred dollars ($200)
7,001 to 8,000 two hundred seventy-five dollars ($275)
8,001 to 9,000 three hundred fifty dollars ($350)
9,001 to 10,000 four hundred twenty-five dollars ($425)
over 10,000 five hundred dollars ($500)."
Section 3. Section 66-7-412 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1959,
Chapter 247, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:
"66-7-412. SPECIAL FARM PERMITS.--The motor
transportation division of the department of public safety shall have the
authority to issue special permits at all ports of entry where registration
stations or places where inspection and registration services are maintained by
the motor transportation division to all implements of husbandry using the
highways, including farm tractors, and to the instrumentalities or vehicles
that may be carrying the implements of husbandry, including farm tractors, when
the securing of these permits is required by law."
Section 4. Section 66-7-413 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978,
Chapter 35, Section 484, as amended) is amended to read:
"66-7-413. PERMITS FOR EXCESSIVE SIZE AND
WEIGHT--SPECIAL NOTIFICATION REQUIRED ON MOVEMENT OF MANUFACTURED HOMES.--
A.
The department of public safety and local highway authorities may, in
their discretion, upon application in writing and good cause being shown, issue
a special permit in writing authorizing the applicant to operate or move a
vehicle or load of a size or weight exceeding the maximum specified in Sections
66-7-401 through 66-7-416 NMSA 1978 on any highway under the jurisdiction of the
state transportation commission or local authorities. Except for the movement of manufactured
homes, a permit may be granted, in cases of emergency, for the transportation
of loads on a certain unit or combination of equipment for a specified period
of time not to exceed one year, and the permit shall contain the route to be
traversed, the type of load to be transported and any other restrictions or
conditions deemed necessary by the body granting the permit. In every other case, the permit shall be
issued for a single trip and may designate the route to be traversed and
contain any other restrictions or conditions deemed necessary by the body
granting the permit. Every permit shall
be carried in the vehicle to which it refers and shall be opened for inspection
to any peace officer. It is a
misdemeanor for any person to violate any of the conditions or terms of the
special permit.
B.
The department of public safety shall charge and collect, when the
movement consists of any load of a width of twenty feet or greater for a
distance of five miles or more, the sum of three hundred dollars ($300) a day
or fraction thereof to defray the cost of state or local police escort. The permit issued and the fee charged shall
be based upon the entire movement at one time requiring police escort and not
upon the number of vehicles involved.
C.
The department of public safety shall promulgate regulations in
accordance with the State Rules Act pertaining to safety practices, liability
insurance and equipment for escort vehicles provided by the motor carrier
himself and for escort vehicles provided by a private business in this state.
(1)
If a motor carrier provides his own escort vehicles and personnel, the
department of public safety shall not charge an escort fee but shall provide
the motor carrier escort personnel with a copy of applicable regulations and
shall inspect the escort vehicles for the safety equipment required by the
regulations. If the escort vehicles and
personnel meet the requirements set forth in the regulations and if the motor
carrier holds a valid certificate of public convenience and necessity or
permit, as applicable, issued pursuant to Chapter 65, Article 2 NMSA 1978, the
department of public safety shall issue the special permit.
(2)
If the escort service is a private business, the business shall have
applied to the public regulation commission for and been issued a permit or
certificate to operate as a contract or common motor carrier pursuant to
Chapter 65, Article 2 NMSA 1978. The
public regulation commission shall supply copies of applicable regulations to
the business by mail and shall supply additional copies upon request. If the escort vehicles and personnel meet the
requirements set forth in the regulations and if the escort service holds a
certificate, the special permit shall be issued and the department of public
safety shall not charge an escort fee.
(3)
The movement of vehicles upon the highways of this state requiring a
special permit and required to use an escort of the type noted in Paragraphs
(1) and (2) of this subsection is subject to department of public safety
authority and inspection at all times.
(4)
The state highway and transportation department shall conduct
engineering investigations and engineering inspections to determine which
four-lane highways are safe for the operation or movement of manufactured homes
without an escort. After making that
determination, the state highway and transportation department shall hold
public hearings in the area of the state affected by the determination, after
which it may adopt regulations designating those four-lane highways as being
safe for the operation or movement of manufactured homes without an
escort. If any portion of such a
four-lane highway lies within the boundaries of a municipality, the state
highway and transportation department, after obtaining the approval of the
municipal governing body, shall include such portions in its regulations.
D.
Except for the movement of manufactured homes, special permits may be
issued for a single vehicle or combination of vehicles by the department of
public safety for a period not to exceed one year for a fee of sixty dollars
($60.00). The permits may allow
excessive height, length and width for a vehicle or combination of vehicles or
load thereon and may include a provision for excessive weight if the operation
is to be within the vicinity of a municipality.
E.
Special permits for a single trip for a vehicle or combination of
vehicles or load thereon of excessive weight, width, length and height may be
issued by the department of public safety for a single vehicle for a fee of
fifteen dollars ($15.00).
F.
If the vehicle for which a permit is issued under this section is a
manufactured home, the department of public safety or local highway authority
issuing the permit shall furnish the following information to the property tax
division of the taxation and revenue department, which shall then forward the
information:
(1)
to the county assessor of any county from which a manufactured home is
being moved, the date the permit was issued, the location being moved from, the
location being moved to if within the same county, the name of the owner of the
manufactured home and the identification and registration numbers of the
manufactured home;
(2)
to the county assessor of any county in this state to which a
manufactured home is being moved, the date the permit was issued, the location
being moved from, the location being moved to, the name of the owner of the
manufactured home and the registration and identification numbers of the
manufactured home; and
(3)
to the owner of a manufactured home having a destination in this state,
notification that the information required in Paragraphs (1) and (2) of this
subsection is being given to the respective county assessors and that
manufactured homes are subject to property taxation.
G.
Except as provided in Subsection H of this section, if the movement of a
manufactured home originates in this state, no permit shall be issued under
Subsection F of this section until the owner of the manufactured home or his
authorized agent obtains and presents to the department of public safety proof
that a certificate has been issued by the county assessor or treasurer of the
county in which the manufactured home movement originates showing that either:
(1)
all property taxes due or to become due on the manufactured home for the
current tax year or any past tax years have been paid, except for manufactured
homes located on an Indian reservation; or
(2)
no liability for property taxes on the manufactured home exists for the
current tax year or any past tax years, except for manufactured homes located
on an Indian reservation.
H.
The movement of a manufactured home from the lot or business location of
a manufactured home dealer to its destination designated by an owner-purchaser
is not subject to the requirements of Subsection G of this section if the
manufactured home movement originates from the lot or business location of the
dealer and the manufactured home was part of his inventory prior to the sale to
the owner-purchaser; however, the movement of a manufactured home by a dealer
or his authorized agent as a result of a sale or trade-in from a
nondealer-owner is subject to the requirements of Subsection G of this section
whether the destination is the business location of a dealer or some other
destination.
I.
No permit shall be issued under this section for movement of a
manufactured home whose width exceeds eighteen feet with no more than a
six-inch roof overhang on the left side or twelve inches on the right side in
addition to the eighteen-foot width of the manufactured home. Manufactured homes exceeding the limitations
of this section shall only be moved on dollies placed on the front and the rear
of the structure.
J.
The secretary of public safety may by regulation provide for movers of
manufactured homes to self-issue permits for certain sizes of manufactured
homes over specific routes; however, in no case may the cost of each permit be
less than fifteen dollars ($15.00).
K.
The secretary of public safety may provide by regulation for dealers of
implements of husbandry to self-issue permits for the movement of certain sizes
of implements of husbandry from the lot or business location of the dealer over
specific routes with specific escort requirements, if necessary, to a
destination designated by an owner-purchaser or for purposes of a working
demonstration on the property of a proposed owner-purchaser. The department of public safety shall charge
a fee for each self-issued permit not to exceed fifteen dollars ($15.00).
L.
Any private motor carrier requesting an oversize or overweight permit
shall provide proof of insurance in at least the following amounts:
(1)
bodily injury liability, providing:
(a)
fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for each person; and
(b)
one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for each accident; and
(2)
property damage liability, providing twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000) for each accident.
M.
Any common motor carrier requesting an oversize permit shall produce a
copy of a form "e" or other acceptable evidence that the common motor
carrier maintains the insurance minimums prescribed by the public regulation
commission.
N.
The department of public safety may provide by regulation the time
periods during which a vehicle or load of a size or weight exceeding the
maximum specified in
Sections 66-7-401 through 66-7-416
NMSA 1978 may be operated or moved by a motor carrier on a highway under the jurisdiction
of the state transportation commission or local authorities."
Section 5. Section 66-7-413.2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws
1989, Chapter 291, Section 1) is amended to read:
"66-7-413.2. ENGINEERING INVESTIGATIONS FOR VEHICLES IN
EXCESS OF ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY THOUSAND POUNDS.--
A.
All vehicles with a gross vehicle weight in excess of one hundred
seventy thousand pounds shall require a special permit as provided for in
Section 66-7-413 NMSA 1978 and no such permit shall be issued unless:
(1)
an engineering investigation and review have been conducted to:
(a)
establish whether the move could be made without visible or documented
damages to the portion of road or bridges upon which the move is to be made;
(b)
establish whether the move could be made without visible or documented
damages to any private facilities along the road upon which the move is to be
made; and
(c)
estimate the cost for any necessary modifications the move may cause;
and
(2)
when required, the applicant has submitted to the motor transportation
division of the department of public safety and the local highway authorities
all pertinent information requested of the applicant by the motor
transportation division of the department of public safety. If the submitted data is not acceptable to
the state highway and transportation department, the applicant will be advised
by the motor transportation division of the department of public safety that
engineering investigations will be conducted by the state highway and
transportation department and the cost incurred by the state highway and
transportation department will be paid by the applicant as an added cost to his
permit fee.
B.
The motor transportation division of the department of public safety
shall adopt the necessary rules and regulations for the development of data for
an investigation to determine whether to issue any special permit pursuant to
Section 66-7-413 NMSA 1978.
C.
The applicant or the applicant's employer shall pay the costs for any
modifications to the road, bridges or private facilities along the road that
the motor transportation division of the department of public safety has
determined are necessary for the issuance of the special permit and the costs
for any damages to the road or bridges that are the result of the move and the
fault of the mover and not the motor transportation division of the department
of public safety.
D.
Any person who violates the provisions of Subsection A of this section
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and punished by a fine of not more than one
thousand dollars ($1,000) or imprisonment for a definite term not to exceed six
months, or both.
E.
Nothing contained in this section shall limit in any manner the
authority of the state, a county, a municipality or a political subdivision
thereof to collect damages for any unlawful use of highways as provided by law.”
HB 591
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