HB 4325 H R&T AM 2-6
The Committee on Roads and Transportation moves to amend the
bill on page 1, section 2a, line 19, by striking all of section 2a
in its entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
"
§24A-2-2a. Regulation of business of towing, hauling or carrying
wrecked or disabled vehicles.
(a) On and after July one, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-two, common Common carriers by motor vehicles engaged in the
business of towing, hauling or carrying wrecked or disabled
vehicles shall, notwithstanding any other provision of the laws of
the State of West Virginia to the contrary, be regulated by the
provisions of this section and this section shall not be applicable
to said carriers until such date.
(b) No common carrier by motor vehicle engaged in the business
of towing, hauling or carrying wrecked or disabled vehicles and
mobile homes shall be required to obtain a common carrier
certificate or other certificate of authority from the commission
prior to engaging in such business, however, such carrier shall not
engage in such business unless and until such carrier shall have
registered as a carrier with the commission in accordance with the
provisions of this section.
(c) A person may not act as a common carrier by motor vehicle
by engaging in the business of towing, hauling or carrying wrecked
or disabled motor vehicles for hire unless that person has registered as a carrier with the Public Service Commission as
provided in this section; nor, may a person continue to act as a
carrier by engaging in the business of towing, hauling or carrying
wrecked or disabled motor vehicles for hire if his or her
registration is revoked or suspended by the commission. A person
registered as a carrier under the provisions of this section may
not charge, demand, collect or receive a greater remuneration for
the towing, hauling or carrying of any wrecked or disabled motor
vehicle than the rates, fares and charges established by the
provisions of this section.
(d)(1) As used in this subsection , "towing service" means a
common carrier by motor vehicle engaging in the business of towing,
hauling or carrying wrecked or disabled motor vehicles for hire and
required to be registered as a carrier with the Public Service
Commission as provided in this section.
(2) A motor vehicle may not be towed from private property by
a towing service without the consent of the owner or operator of
the motor vehicle without complying with the following
requirements, conditions and duties:
(A) The towing service must have prior written authorization
from the owner, lessee, or agent of the owner of the private
property to tow motor vehicles located on the property and such
prior written authorization must be filed with the Public Service
Commission prior to towing the vehicle, or the owner, lessee, or agent of the owner of the private property must be present;
(B) Beginning the first day of July, two thousand nine, a
criminal background investigation of the operator of the towing
vehicle must have been previously conducted by the towing service
and if the investigation reveals that the operator has been
convicted of a felony, the towing service must report the felony
conviction of the operator to the Public Service Commission.
(C) Upon completion of the towing of the vehicle, the towing
vehicle operator must immediately contact the local law-enforcement
agency upon arrival at the towing destination, report the private
property from which the vehicle which has been towed, the make,
model and license number of the vehicle, and the address and
location of the facility to where the vehicle has been towed and is
stored. The local law enforcement agency to be contacted is the
municipal police department, if the tow was from property in a
municipality, or, the county sheriff department of the county where
the private property from which vehicle was towed is located;
(D) The towing service must accept bank credit card or debit
card payments for charges necessary to be paid for the recovery of
the vehicle; and
(E) The towing service may not charge a storage fee for the
initial twenty-four hours of service immediately following the tow.
(3) The public service commission shall propose rules for
legislative approval in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, to effectuate, implement
and enforce the provisions and requirements of this subsection.
(e) The commission shall register all carriers as may make
application for registration as a common carrier by motor vehicle
for the purpose of engaging in the business of towing, hauling or
carrying wrecked or disabled motor vehicles for hire upon
satisfactory evidence to the commission that the carrier has
complied with all applicable requirements of this chapter and all
applicable rules and regulations of the commission. The commission
shall by general order, applicable to all carriers registered under
this section, fix, alter and determine just, fair, reasonable and
sufficient maximum statewide or regional schedules of rates, fares
and charges, and it shall establish reasonable classifications of
carriers for which the schedules are applicable, but before the
rates, fares and charges are fixed, altered or determined, the
commission shall hold hearings in order to give all interested
parties an opportunity to be heard, and it shall give reasonable
notice of the hearings in the manner as the commission shall by
rule prescribe. Carriers registered under the provisions of this
section are subject to the regulatory powers of the commission as
provided in section three of this article.
(f) Upon the complaint of any aggrieved party, the commission
may suspend or revoke the registration of any person registered
with the commission under the provisions of this section for the violation of any rule or regulation established by the commission
and applicable to that person or for the violation of any provision
of this article applicable to persons registered under the
provisions of this section: Provided, That for the first
violation, suspension of registration shall be for a period of not
more than thirty days; and, for a second violation the commission
may revoke the registration for a period of one year; and, for a
third violation the commission may revoke the registration
permanently. But before any suspension or revocation is effected,
the person registered under this section shall first be given
reasonable notice of the charges against him the person and shall
be granted an opportunity to be heard by the commission or its
designee in accordance with the rules and regulations for hearings
as may be by rule established by the commission."
Adopted
Rejected