Senate Committee on Transportation (05/07/2012)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION

Date:	05/07/2012	ATTENDANCE

Time:	11:24 AM to 12:18 PM	King S.	*
		Newell	*
Place:	SCR 352	Renfroe	X
		Schwartz	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Spence	*
	Senator Hudak	Williams S.	X
		Hudak	X
This Report was prepared by
	Kori Donaldson
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB12-184		Referred to Finance

11:24 AM -- Senate Bill 12-184

The committee was called to order. A quorum was present. Senator Cadman, sponsor, presented Senate Bill 12-184, which allows owners of 10 or more pieces of special mobile machinery (SMM) to register their entire fleet once per year. Special mobile machinery includes vehicles commonly used in the construction, maintenance, and repair of roadways, the drilling of wells, and the digging of ditches. Under current law, these vehicles must be registered separately. In addition, the bill:

allows for the use of special plates, stickers or a certificate indicating that a SMM registration is pending;
removes the requirement for SMM not operating on highways to have an annual validating tab or sticker;
allows fleet owners to quarterly prorate the registration of each vehicle to accommodate the registration of an entire fleet; and
requires a $7.00 fee per vehicle to register a fleet, in addition to regular taxes and fees paid on each vehicle in the fleet.

In order to register a fleet under this bill, an owner must submit a report to the registering county clerk and the Department of Revenue, stating where the SMM was first delivered in the state, with evidence of taxes and fees paid in the preceding quarter.

Senator Cadman addressed questions from the committee. Senator Newell explained that local school districts do not have a position on the bill.

11:32 AM -- Mr. Scott Mecklejohn, representing United Rentals -- Sunbelt Rentals, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Mecklejohn distributed a handout with pictures of various specialized mobile machinery (Attachment A). Mr. Mecklejohn described the need for the bill. He said the fleet plate system is designed to streamline the existing system for licensing SMMs. Mr. Mecklejohn spoke to the anticipated fiscal impact of the bill on counties and SMM operators. Mr. Mecklejohn addressed questions from the committee. Discussion ensued about the timing of the bill's introduction.

11:42 AM

Mr. Mecklejohn responded to questions from the committee about the 25 percent fee referenced on page 3, line 9 of the introduced bill, and about the possibility of working on the bill during the 2012 legislative interim in the Transportation Legislation Review Committee (TLRC). He also responded to a question about how operators will register fleets of SMMs under the bill. Discussion turned to the multi-year impact of the bill. Mr. Mecklejohn said SB 12-184 will not change the process or cost of titling and licensing SMMs.

11:52 AM

Senator Cadman suggested the TLRC could consider how an existing 2 percent tax is applied to the rental of SMMs.

11:53 AM -- Ms. Peg Ackerman, representing the County Clerks, came to the table to address questions from the committee about the position of the county clerks on the bill. Ms. Ackerman distributed an e-mail about the potential fiscal impact of the bill (Attachment B). Discussion ensued about the prepared fiscal note and about the distribution of moneys to the counties.

12:04 PM -- Mr. Jonathan Senft, Legislative Council Staff, came to the table to discuss the prepared fiscal note and the expected fiscal impact of the bill. In response to a question, Mr. Senft said the bill is revenue neutral to the counties. Discussion ensued about the new fee assessed under the bill and the existing specific ownership tax (SOT). Mr. Senft addressed questions about the timing of payments under the bill. Mr. Senft clarified the projected fiscal impact of the bill in FY 2013-14. Senator Cadman made some closing remarks about the bill and addressed additional questions from the committee.


BILL:	SB12-184
TIME:	12:12:35 PM
MOVED:	Williams S.
MOTION:	Refer Senate Bill 12-184 to the Committee on Finance with a favorable recommendation. The motion passed on a vote of 6-1.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	King S.	Yes
	Newell	Yes
	Renfroe	Yes
	Schwartz	No
	Spence	Yes
	Williams S.	Yes
	Hudak	Yes

Final YES: 6 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

12:18 PM

The committee adjourned.