Senate Bill No. 209
(By Senators Miller, Love, Bailey and Whitlow)
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[Introduced January 30, 1995; referred to the Committee
on Transportation; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section sixteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section three, article ten of said chapter, all relating to establishing a three-year registration period for Class T and R vehicles.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section sixteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section three, article ten of said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. ORIGINAL AND RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION: ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF TITLE.

§17A-3-16. Expiration of registration and certificates oftitle.

(a) Every vehicle registration under this chapter and every registration card and registration plate issued hereunder shall expire at midnight on the last day of the month designated by the commissioner: Provided, That the commissioner may extend the period during which the registration plates may be used.
Certificates of title need not be renewed annually but shall remain valid until canceled by the division for cause or upon a transfer of any interest shown therein.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or of any provision of this chapter, the commissioner shall adopt, for the vehicles set forth below which are subject to registration hereunder, a staggered registration system whereby the registration of all the vehicles shall be for a period of twelve consecutive calendar months, the expiration dates for which shall be staggered throughout the year.
(1) On or after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred seventy-eight, all Class A motor vehicles as defined in section one, article ten of this chapter, shall be registered for a period of twelve consecutive calendar months. There hereby are established twelve registration periods, each of which shall start on the first day of each calendar month of the year and shall end on the last day of the twelfth month from date of beginning. The period ending on the thirty-first day of January is designated the first period, that ending on the twenty-eighth (twenty-ninth) day of February is designated the second; that ending on the thirty- first day of March is designated the third; that ending on the thirtieth day of April is designated the fourth; that ending on the thirty-first day of May is designated the fifth; that ending on the thirtieth day of June is designated the sixth; that ending on the thirty-first day of July is designated the seventh; that ending on the thirty-first day of August is designated the eighth; that ending on the thirtieth day of September is designated the ninth; that ending on the thirty-first day of October is designated the tenth; that ending on the thirtieth day of November is designated the eleventh; and that ending on the thirty-first day of December is designated the twelfth.
(2) All Class A motor vehicles which are operated for the first time upon the public highways of this state to and including the fifteenth day of any given month shall be subject to registration and payment of fee for the twelve-month period commencing the first day of the month of operation. All Class A motor vehicles operated for the first time upon the public highways of this state on and after the sixteenth day of any given month shall be subject to registration and payment of fee for the twelve- month period commencing the first day of the month of the next following calendar month.
(c) On or before the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, all Class T and Class R vehicles shall be registered for a maximum period of three years or portion thereof based on the number of years remaining in the three-year period.
ARTICLE 10. FEES FOR REGISTRATION, LICENSING, ETC.

§17A-10-3. Registration fees for vehicles equipped with pneumatic tires.

The following registration fees for the classes indicated shall be paid annually to the division for the registration of vehicles subject to registration hereunder when equipped with pneumatic tires: Provided, That the registration fees and any other fees required by this chapter for Class T and Class R vehicles shall be paid to the division for a maximum period of three years or portions thereof based on the number of years remaining in the three-year period.
The fees paid to the division for a multiyear registration provided for by this chapter shall be the same as the annual registration fee established by this section, and any other fee required by this chapter multiplied by the number of years for which the registration is issued.
Class A. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of this class is as follows:
(1) For motor vehicles which weigh three thousand pounds or less -- twenty-five dollars.
(2) For motor vehicles which weigh three thousand and one pounds to four thousand pounds -- thirty dollars.
(3) For motor vehicles which weigh more than four thousand pounds -- thirty-six dollars.
(4) For motor vehicles designed as trucks with declared gross weights of four thousand pounds or less -- twenty-five dollars.
(5) For motor vehicles designed as trucks with declared gross weights of four thousand one pounds to eight thousand pounds -- thirty dollars.
For the purpose of determining weight, the actual weight of the vehicle shall be taken: Provided, That for vehicles owned by churches, or by trustees for churches, which vehicles are regularly used for transporting parishioners to and from church services, no license fee shall be charged, but notwithstanding such exemption, the certificate of registration and license plates shall be obtained the same as other cards and plates under this article.
Class B, Class E and Class K. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of these three classes is as follows:
(1) For declared gross weights of eight thousand one pounds to sixteen thousand pounds -- twenty-eight dollars plus five dollars for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds eight thousand pounds.
(2) For declared gross weights greater than sixteen thousand pounds, but less than fifty-five thousand pounds -- seventy-eight dollars and fifty cents, plus ten dollars for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds sixteen thousand pounds.
(3) For declared gross weights of fifty-five thousand pounds or more -- seven hundred thirty-seven dollars and fifty cents, plus fifteen dollars and seventy-five cents for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds fifty-five thousand pounds.
Class C and Class L. The registration fee for all vehicles of these two classes is seventeen dollars and fifty cents, except that semitrailers, full trailers, pole trailers and converter gear registered as Class C and Class L may be registered for a period of ten years at a fee of one hundred dollars.
Class G. The registration fee for each motorcycle is eight dollars.
Class H. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class operating entirely within the state is five dollars. For vehicles engaged in interstate transportation of persons, the registration fee is the amount of the fees provided by this section for Class B, Class E and Class K reduced by the amount that the mileage of the vehicles operated in states other than West Virginia bears to the total mileage operated by the vehicles in all states under a formula to be established by the division of motor vehicles.
Class J. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of this class is eighty-five dollars. Ambulances and hearses used exclusively as such are exempt from the above special fees.
Class R. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is twelve dollars.
Class S. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is seventeen dollars and fifty cents.
Class T. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is eight dollars.
Class U. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is fifty-seven dollars and fifty cents.
Class Farm Truck. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is as follows: (1) For farm trucks of declared gross weights of eight thousand one pounds to sixteen thousand pounds -- thirty dollars; (2) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of sixteen thousand one pounds to twenty-two thousand pounds -- sixty dollars; (3) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of twenty- two thousand one pounds to twenty-eight thousand pounds -- ninety dollars; (4) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of twenty- eight thousand one pounds to thirty-four thousand pounds -- one hundred fifteen dollars; (5) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of thirty-four thousand one pounds to forty-four thousand pounds -- one hundred sixty dollars; (6) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of forty-four thousand one pounds to fifty- four thousand pounds -- two hundred five dollars; and (7) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of fifty-four thousand one pounds to sixty-four thousand pounds -- two hundred fifty dollars.

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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to remove an obsolete reference to all vehicle registrations expiring June 30 of each year and provide for a three year registration cycle for Class T (mostly boat trailers) and Class R (recreational travel trailers) vehicles. The bill requires that the fees collected for multiyear registrations are calculated by multiplying the annual fees by the number of years for which the registration is issued.)

TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS

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And,
On page ___, by striking out the title and substituting therefor a new title, to read as follows:
Senate Bill No. 209--A Bill to amend and reenact section sixteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section three, article ten of said chapter, all relating to establishing a three-year registration period for Class T and R vehicles; and establishing a multiyear fee schedule.