Date: 04/12/2006
Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1390
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION & ENERGY
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02:10 PM -- House Bill 06-1390
Representative Crane, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1390 which authorizes mobile cranes and their components to be transported by a single motor vehicle as a nondivisible load if the manufacturer designed the crane to be transported in that manner, and if the vehicle and load do not exceed the weight and size limits for nondivisible loads.
Representative Crane read a letter from a constituent, Sterling Crane Inc., that outlined the company's concerns regarding the Colorado Department of Transportation's (CDOT) policy for issuing permits to transport cranes. Sterling Crane is concerned with the costs, such as labor, vehicles, and insurance, associated with transporting cranes as divisible loads. Representative Crane also distributed a fact sheet on HB06-1390 (Attachment A).
02:17 PM
Mark Hamonz, P.E., representing himself, spoke in opposition to the bill. Mr. Hamonz stated that he owns a small engineering firm, is a licensed professional engineer, and has worked for over 20 years inspecting and reporting on local bridges in Colorado. He explained that he is concerned about the effect the bill will have on local highways and bridges and stated that the majority of Colorado's local highways and bridges are not capable of handling overloads. Mr. Hamonz described a survey he conducted on approximately 700 local bridges. He stated that of the 700 bridges in his survey, 26 percent of the bridges are posted bridges for which any overload is prohibited and 62 percent of the bridges do not meet current design standards, and can neither handle maximum loads nor overloads. He further stated that allowing overloads would increase the rate of deterioration of Colorado's roads and bridges.
Responding to questions from members, Mr. Hamonz stated that very few cities or counties have a process for permitting trucks to transport overloads over local roads or bridges. He stated that most of the damage he has seen to local bridges and highways is due to overloads.
02:44 PM
Mike Braaten, representing the Colorado Municipal League (CML), spoke in opposition to the bill. Mr. Braaten stated that the additional weight from vehicles transporting cranes can cause damage to local roads. He stated that CDOT's current permitting process requests that the party seeking the permit notify the city or county the party will travel through. He stated that there are a few jurisdictions in Colorado that have a permitting process.
Mr. Braaten also stated that the CML would like to see legislation that addresses overload requirements for all interested parties and not just cranes.
02:52 PM
Herman Stockinger and Teresa Lauser, representing CDOT, spoke in opposition to the bill. Mr. Stockinger stated that Colorado has approximately 253 local bridges and 154 on-system bridges that are in poor condition and need to be replaced at a cost of over $600 million. He stated that 35 percent of Colorado's highways are rated as "in poor condition," and 4,600 miles of Colorado's highways need to be reconstructed. He stated that CDOT opposes bills that will allow further damage to existing bridges and highways. Mr. Stockinger also expressed CDOT's concern with the bill being specific to cranes and stated that there are other industries that must comply with divisible load rules.
Ms. Lauser stated that Sterling Crane, Inc. approached CDOT's commercial vehicle permit office in early November of 2005. She stated that it is common for a company to contact the permit office. Generally, a company will contact the permit office to see if a vehicle's specifications for axles, weight, and spacing comply with CDOT's weight map requirements. She stated that Sterling Crane, Inc. expressed their concern regarding divisible loads and that she worked with the company and representatives of the company to help them understand the statutory history and authority of the rules.
03:15 PM
Alan Rutledge, representing the Port of Entry Division of the Department of Revenue (DOR), answered questions for the committee. Mr. Rutledge described the duties and authority of the Port of Entry. He stated that the Port of Entry must certify each year to the Federal Highway Administration that Colorado is complying with federal highway and transportation law. He stated that Colorado risks losing federal highway funds if the state does not comply with federal rules regarding divisible loads on the interstate system. Mr. Rutledge also expressed his concern with the fact that the term "components" in the bill is not defined. He stated that as the bill is currently written, a mobile crane operator could carry any item as a "component" and the burden of proof would be on the state.
03:19 PM
Barry McRann, representing Sterling Crane, Inc., spoke in support of the bill. Mr. McRann discussed the labor, environmental, and financial costs associated with having to transport cranes in more than one load. He stated that Sterling Crane is not trying to dismantle the divisible load law and that his company has a unique issue. He explained that cranes are not on the highways all day, and that they are simply transported to and from the work site at which they are needed. He stated that divisible load rules force him to use more drivers, trucks, fuel, insurance than is needed. Mr. McRann distributed a handout to the committee (Attachment B).
03:35 PM
Chairwoman McFadyen laid over the bill to allow the bill sponsor to work with interested parties in possibly coming up with a compromise amendment.
03:39 PM
The committee adjourned.