WEST virginia Legislature
2016 regular session
By
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to the Committee on Roads and Transportation then the Judiciary.
A BILL to amend and
reenact §17C-14-9a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to amend and
reenact §17C-15-26 of said code; and to amend and reenact §24A-2-2b of said
code, all related to emergency vehicles; increasing penalties for failure to
use due caution when approaching an emergency vehicle while using emergency
signals; authorizing the use of red flashing lights by tow trucks and wreckers;
and providing that Public Service Commission publish guidelines for use of
certain safety equipment and a fee
schedule for use of secondary vehicle.
Be it enacted by the
Legislature of West Virginia:
That §17C-14-9a of the
Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; that §17C-15-26
of said code be amended and reenacted; and that §24A-2-2b of said code be
amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 17C. TRAFFIC REGULATIONS AND LAWS OF THE ROAD.
ARTICLE 14. MISCELLANEOUS
RULEs.
§17C-14-9a. Approaching
authorized emergency vehicles; penalties.
(a) The driver of any
vehicle approaching a stationary authorized emergency vehicle, when the
authorized emergency vehicle is giving a signal by displaying alternately
flashing red, red and white, blue, or red and blue lights or amber or yellow
warning lights, shall:
(1) Proceed with due
caution, yield the right-of-way by making a lane change not adjacent to that of
the authorized emergency vehicle, if possible with regard to safety and traffic
conditions, if on a highway having at least four lanes with not less than two
lanes proceeding in the same direction as the approaching vehicle and reduce
speed to a safe level for road conditions; or
(2) Proceed with due
caution, reduce the speed of the vehicle, maintaining a safe speed not to
exceed fifteen miles per hour on any nondivided highway or street and
twenty-five miles per hour on any divided highway depending on road conditions,
if changing lanes would be impossible or unsafe.
(b) (l) Any person who
violates any subsection of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $500 $1,000 or
confined in the county or regional jail not more than sixty days, or both fined
and imprisoned.
(2) If violation of this
section results in property damage in addition to any other penalty imposed,
driving privileges of the persons causing the property damage shall be
suspended for ninety days.
(3) If violation of this
section results in injury to another person in addition to any other penalty
imposed, the driving privileges of the person causing the injury shall be
suspended for six months.
(4) If violation of this
section results in the death of another person in addition to any other penalty
imposed, the driving privileges of the person causing the death shall be
suspended for two years.
(5) Any person who violates
any provision of this section and while doing so also violates section two,
article five of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction
thereof, shall, in addition to the penalties set out in section two of said
article and this section, be fined not less than $1,000 $2,000 nor
more than $5,000, or confined in the county or regional jail for a period not
more than six months, or both fined and imprisoned.
ARTICLE 15. EQUIPMENT.
§17C-15-26. Special
restrictions on lamps.
(a) Any lighted lamp or
illuminating device upon a motor vehicle other than head lamps, spot lamps,
auxiliary lamps or flashing front-direction signals which projects a beam of
light of an intensity greater than three hundred candlepower shall be so
directed that no part of the beam will strike the level of the roadway on which
the vehicle stands at a distance of more than seventy-five feet from the
vehicle.
(b) No person may drive or
move any vehicle or equipment upon any highway with any lamp or device on the
vehicle displaying other than a white or amber light visible from directly in
front of the center of the vehicle except as authorized by subsection (d) of
this section.
(c) Except as authorized in
subsections (d) and (g) of this section and authorized in section nineteen of
this article, flashing lights are prohibited on motor vehicles: Provided,
That any vehicle as a means for indicating right or left turn or any vehicle as
a means of indicating the same is disabled or otherwise stopped for an
emergency may have blinking or flashing lights.
(d) Notwithstanding any
other provisions of this chapter, the following colors of flashing warning
lights are restricted for the use of the type of vehicle designated:
(1) Blue flashing warning
lights are restricted to police vehicles. Authorization for police vehicles
shall be designated by the chief administrative official of each police
department.
(2) Except for standard
vehicle equipment authorized by section nineteen of this article, red flashing
warning lights are restricted to the following:
(A) Ambulances;
(B) Firefighting vehicles;
(C) Hazardous material
response vehicles;
(D) Industrial fire brigade
vehicles;
(E) Rescue squad vehicles
not operating out of a fire department;
(F) School buses;
(G) Class A vehicles, as
defined by section one, article ten, chapter seventeen-a of this code, of those
firefighters who are authorized by their fire chiefs to have the lights;
(H) Class A vehicles of
members of duly chartered rescue squads not operating out of a fire department;
(I) Class A vehicles of
members of ambulance services or duly chartered rescue squads who are
authorized by their respective chiefs to have the lights;
(J) Class A vehicles of
out-of-state residents who are active members of West Virginia fire
departments, ambulance services or duly chartered rescue squads who are
authorized by their respective chiefs to have the lights;
(K) West Virginia
Department of Agriculture emergency response vehicles;
(L) Vehicles designated by
the Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety for
emergency response or emergency management by the Division of Corrections,
Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority, Division of Juvenile
Services and Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management; and
(M) Class A vehicles of
emergency response or emergency management personnel as designated by the
Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety and the
county commission of the county of residence.
Red flashing warning lights
attached to a Class A vehicle may be operated only when responding to or
engaged in handling an emergency requiring the attention of the firefighters,
members of the ambulance services or chartered rescue squads.
(3) The use of red flashing
warning lights is authorized as follows:
(A) Authorization for all
ambulances shall be designated by the Department of Health and Human Resources
and the sheriff of the county of residence.
(B) Authorization for all
fire department vehicles shall be designated by the fire chief and the State
Fire Marshal's Office.
(C) Authorization for all
hazardous material response vehicles and industrial fire brigades shall be
designated by the chief of the fire department and the State Fire Marshal's
Office.
(D) Authorization for all
rescue squad vehicles not operating out of a fire department shall be
designated by the squad chief, the sheriff of the county of residence and the
Department of Health and Human Resources.
(E) Authorization for
school buses shall be designated as set out in section twelve, article fourteen
of this chapter.
(F) Authorization for
firefighters to operate Class A vehicles shall be designated by their fire
chiefs and the State Fire Marshal's office.
(G) Authorization for
members of ambulance services or any other emergency medical service personnel
to operate Class A vehicles shall be designated by their chief official, the
Department of Health and Human Resources and the sheriff of the county of
residence.
(H) Authorization for
members of duly chartered rescue squads not operating out of a fire department
to operate Class A vehicles shall be designated by their squad chiefs, the
sheriff of the county of residence and the Department of Health and Human
Resources.
(I) Authorization for
out-of-state residents operating Class A vehicles who are active members of a
West Virginia fire department, ambulance services or duly chartered rescue
squads shall be designated by their respective chiefs.
(J) Authorization for West
Virginia Department of Agriculture emergency response vehicles shall be
designated by the Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture.
(K) Authorization for
vehicles for emergency response or emergency management by the Division of
Corrections, Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority, Division of
Juvenile Services and Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
shall be designated by the Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs and
Public Safety.
(L) Authorization for Class
A vehicles of emergency response or emergency management personnel as
designated by the Secretary of the Department of Military Affairs and Public
Safety and the county commission of the county of residence.
(M) Authorization for
tow trucks and wreckers registered with the Public Service Commission, pursuant
to article two, chapter twenty-four-a of this code.
(4) Yellow or amber
flashing warning lights are restricted to the following:
(A) All other emergency
vehicles, including tow trucks and wreckers, authorized by this chapter and by
section twenty-seven of this article;
(B) Postal service vehicles
and rural mail carriers, as authorized in section nineteen of this article;
(C) Rural newspaper
delivery vehicles;
(D) Flag car services;
(E) Vehicles providing road
service to disabled vehicles;
(F) Service vehicles of a
public service corporation;
(G) Snow removal equipment;
(H) School buses; and
(I) Automotive fire
apparatus owned by a municipality or other political subdivision, by a
volunteer or part-volunteer fire company or department or by an industrial fire
brigade.
(5) The use of yellow or
amber flashing warning lights shall be authorized as follows:
(A) Authorization for tow
trucks, wreckers, rural newspaper delivery vehicles, flag car services,
vehicles providing road service to disabled vehicles, service vehicles of a
public service corporation and postal service vehicles shall be designated by
the sheriff of the county of residence.
(B) Authorization for snow
removal equipment shall be designated by the Commissioner of the Division of
Highways.
(C) Authorization for
school buses shall be designated as set out in section twelve, article fourteen
of this chapter.
(D) Authorization for
automotive fire apparatus shall be designated by the fire chief in conformity
with the NFPA 1901 Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus as published by the
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) on July 18, 2003, and adopted by
the State Fire Commission by legislative rule (87 CSR 1, et seq.),
except as follows:
(i) With the approval of the
State Fire Marshal, used automotive fire apparatus may be conformed to the NFPA
standard in effect on the date of its manufacture or conformed to a later NFPA
standard; and
(ii) Automotive fire
apparatus may be equipped with blinking or flashing headlamps.
(e) Notwithstanding the
foregoing provisions of this section, any vehicle belonging to a county board
of education, an organization receiving funding from the state or Federal
Transit Administration for the purpose of providing general public
transportation or hauling solid waste may be equipped with a white flashing
strobotron warning light. This strobe light may be installed on the roof of a
school bus, a public transportation vehicle or a vehicle hauling solid waste
not to exceed one-third the body length forward from the rear of the roof edge.
The light shall have a single clear lens emitting light three hundred sixty
degrees around its vertical axis and may not extend above the roof more than
six and one-half inches. A manual switch and a pilot light must be included to
indicate the light is in operation.
(f) Notwithstanding the
foregoing provisions of this section, any waste service vehicle as defined in
section eleven, article six of this chapter may be equipped with yellow or amber
flashing warning lights.
(g) It is unlawful for
flashing warning lights of an unauthorized color to be installed or used on a
vehicle other than as specified in this section, except that a police vehicle
may be equipped with either or both blue or red warning lights.
CHAPTER 24A. COMMERCIAL
MOTOR CARRIERS.
ARTICLE 2. COMMON
CARRIERS BY MOTOR VEHICLES.
§24A-2-2b. Rule-making
authority; establishing rates for recovering, towing, hauling, carrying, or
storing wrecked or disabled vehicles; complaint process; and required
Legislative Audit.
(a) On or before July 1,
2016, July 1, 2017, the commission shall promulgate rules to
effectuate the provisions of this article.
(b) The rules promulgated
pursuant to the provisions of this section shall describe:
(1) Factors determining the
fair, effective and reasonable rates levied by a carrier for recovering,
towing, hauling, carrying or storing a wrecked or disabled vehicle. The
commission shall consider, but shall not be limited to:
(A) Tow vehicle(s) and
special equipment required to complete recovery/tow;
(B) Total time to complete
the recovery or tow;
(C) Number of regular and
extra employees required to complete the recovery or tow;
(D) Location of vehicle
recovered or towed;
(E) Materials or cargo
involved in recovery or tow;
(F) Comparison with
reasonable prices in the region;
(G) Weather conditions; and
(H) Guidelines and a fee
schedule for the use of a second wrecker or other vehicle to assist in
providing a safe area on or adjacent to a public road to undertake a vehicle
recovery;
(I) Requirements for the
instillation and use of a siren or other warning devices by wreckers responding
to emergency calls; and
(H) (J) Any other
relevant information having a direct effect on the pricing of the recovery,
towing and storage of a recovered or towed vehicle.
(2) The process for filing
a complaint, the review and investigation process to ensure it is fair,
effective and timely: Provided, That
in any formal complaint against a carrier relating to a third-party tow, the
burden of proof to show that the carrier’s charges are just, fair and
reasonable shall be upon the carrier;
(3) The process for
aggrieved parties to recover the cost, from the carrier, for the charge or
charges levied by a carrier for recovering, towing, hauling, carrying or
storing a wrecked or disabled vehicle where the commission determines that such
charge or charges are not otherwise just, fair or reasonable; and
(4) The process to review
existing maximum statewide wrecker rates and special rates for the use of
special equipment in towing and recovery work to ensure that rates are just,
fair and reasonable: Provided, That
the commission shall generally disapprove hourly and flat rates for ancillary
equipment.
(c) All carriers regulated
under this article shall list their approved rates, fares and charges on every
invoice provided to an owner, operator or insurer of a wrecker or disabled
motor vehicle.
(d) The rules promulgated
pursuant to this article shall sunset on July 1, 2021, unless reauthorized.
(e)
On or before December 31, 2020, the Legislative Auditor shall review the rules
promulgated by the Public Service Commission under this section. The audit shall evaluate the rate-making
policy for reasonableness, the complaint process for timeliness, the penalties
for effectiveness and any other metrics the Legislative Auditor deems
appropriate. The Legislative Auditor may
recommend that the rule be reauthorized, reauthorized with amendment or repealed.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is
to enhance penalties for failure to use due caution when approaching an
emergency vehicle using emergency signals; and authorizing tow trucks and
wreckers to use red emergency lights when responding to an accident, and use
another vehicle to assist in a safe recovery of a vehicle.
Strike-throughs indicate language
that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring
indicates new language that would be added.