Transportation – Week of March 3, 2011

STAFF CONTACT:  Hannah Garden-Monheit

SSB 1117 – Failure to Stop at Railroad Crossings
SSB 1138 – Curbstoning

SF 9 – Business-trade and Special Truck License Plates

SF 201 – Scenic Byways in Corporate Limits

SF 205 – Department of Transportation Omnibus

SF 267 – Close Clearances on Railroads

FLOOR ACTION:

SF 205 is the Department of Transportation’s policy bill. Provisions include:

** Providing that a conviction of “nolo contendere” from another state is treated as a conviction in Iowa for the purposes of chapter 321.

** Waiving the fee when a car title is transferred from a deceased spouse to the surviving spouse.

** Making it a simple misdemeanor to drive a commercial vehicle after one’s commercial driver’s license is downgraded to a noncommercial license. Provides for rules allowing for downgrading of a CDL if a medical examiner’s certificate or a self-certification is not provided.

** Clarifies last year’s texting-while-driving bill so that offenders are not required to obtain SR-22 high-risk insurance.

** Allows a CDL applicant to meet vision screening requirements by submitting a vision report from a licensed specialist. This is current law for noncommercial licenses.

** Allows a person without a school bus endorsement on the driver’s license to move an empty school bus for maintenance purposes.

** Increases the property damage threshold from $1,000 to $1,500 for providing proof of financial responsibility for ATV, snowmobile and motor vehicle accidents.

** Prohibits employment as a travel trailer dealer or employee for a period of five years if convicted of fraud.

** Eliminates obsolete language about transfer of a regular-route passenger certificate.

** Updates code references for Unified Carrier Registrations.

** Clarifies previous legislation allowing the DOT to issue a temporary restricted license without a court order.

** Updates requirements for an annual DOT report on public transit. [2/23: 48-0 (Behn, Johnson excused)]

COMMITTEE ACTION:

SSB 1117, as amended, requires peace officers to investigate a report of a violation for failure to stop at a railroad crossing within seven days of receiving the report. Current law says they may initiate an investigation. The bill also increases the penalty for a failure to stop that creates an immediate threat to safety from $200 to $300. [3/1: short form]

SSB 1138, as amended, prohibits a person from parking a car on public or private property for the purposes of selling the vehicle, unless the person has permission of the property owner or is authorized to do so by local ordinance. The bill allows for the vehicle to be parked on the street adjacent to the property with the property owner’s permission. The bill allows a city or county to adopt an ordinance providing for enforcement, including but not limited to citations, fines or removal of the vehicle. [3/1: short form (Zaun, Ernst “no”)]

SF 9 phases out the license plates for business-trade trucks and special farm trucks. Currently, persons receiving these discount registrations are required to display a license plate that says “business-trade” or “special” on it. Under the bill, the next time these plates are replaced the owner of a vehicle with these types of registration will be eligible for a regular license plate or any of the specialty plates currently available to everyone else. Owners have the option of replacing their license plates sooner at their own cost. The bill does not change registration or license plate fees. [2/23: short form (Kapucian, Dandekar, Ernst, Houser, McCoy excused, Hancock “present”]

SF 201 provides that if an interstate designated as a scenic byway passes through the corporate limits of a city, the portion passing through the city shall not be a scenic byway unless the city opts into the designation. The only scenic byway in Iowa that includes an interstate is the Lewis & Clark Scenic Byway. [3/1: short form]

SF 267 establishes standards for minimum close clearances around railroad tracks, with exceptions for entrances to buildings, engine houses, platforms and other facilities where it would be impractical to do so. Structures built before January 1, 2012, may be maintained at existing clearances, unless the platform is being reconstructed. The Department of Transportation may issue waivers for clearance requirements. The bill also establishes a “safe space” around tracks in which debris or vegetation must be cleared and codifies existing administrative rules requiring signs warning of a close clearance. The bill provides for enforcement by an inspector authorized by the DOT, including issuance of an “out of service” notice or a reduction in track speed. The bill includes an appeals process. For each day of noncompliance, the fine is $100. [3/1: short form (Ernst, Hahn, Houser, Kapucian, Zaun “no”)]