Bill Text: GA HB279 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Motor vehicles; use of child restraint systems; increase age

Sponsorship: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 6-1)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-01-09 - Senate Recommitted [HB279 Detail]

Download: Georgia-2011-HB279-Comm_Sub.html

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11 LC 34 3088S

The Senate Transportation Committee offered the following substitute to HB 279:

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT

To amend Chapter 3 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to certificates of title, security interests, and liens, so as to change the value of a vehicle that can be scrapped; to provide for procedures for notifying the Department of Revenue regarding the cancellation of titles to scrap vehicles; to add falsifying a statement regarding cancellation of title of a scrap vehicle to the list of acts deemed to be felonies; to amend Chapter 8 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to equipment and inspection of motor vehicles, so as to increase age requirements for use of child restraint systems; to amend Chapter 47 of Title 43 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to used motor vehicles and parts dealers, so as to change a cross-reference; to provide for related matters; to provide for effective dates; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.

Chapter 3 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to certificates of title, security interests, and liens, is amended by revising paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (a) of Code Section 40-3-36, relating to the cancellation of a certificate of title for scrap, dismantled, or demolished vehicles, as follows:

"(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article to the contrary, if the owner or authorized agent of the owner has not obtained a title in his or her name for the vehicle to be transferred, or has lost the title for the vehicle to be transferred, he or she may sign a statement swearing that, in addition to the foregoing conditions, the vehicle is worth $750.00 $850.00 or less and is at least 12 model years old. The statement described in this paragraph may be used only to transfer such a vehicle to a licensed used motor vehicle parts dealer under Code Section 43-47-7 or scrap metal processor under Code Section 43-43-1. The department shall promulgate a form for the statement which shall include, but not be limited to:

(A) A statement that the vehicle shall never be titled again; it must be dismantled or scrapped;

(B) A description of the vehicle including the year, make, model, vehicle identification number, and color;

(C) The name, address, and driver's license number of the owner;

(D) A certification that the owner:

(i) Never obtained a title to the vehicle in his or her name; or

(ii) Was issued a title for the vehicle, but the title was lost or stolen;

(E) A certification that the vehicle:

(i) Is worth $750.00 $850.00 or less;

(ii) Is at least 12 model years old; and

(iii) Is not subject to any secured interest or lien.;

(F) An acknowledgment that the owner realizes this form will be filed with the department and that it is a felony, punishable by imprisonment for not fewer than one nor more than three years or a fine of not less than $1,000.00 nor more than $5,000.00, or both, to knowingly falsify any information on this statement;

(G) The owner's signature and the date of the transaction;

(H) The name, and address, and National Motor Vehicle Title Information System identification number of the business acquiring the vehicle;

(I) A certification by the business that $750.00 $850.00 or less was paid to acquire the vehicle; and

(J) The business agent's signature and date along with a printed name and title if the agent is signing on behalf of a corporation.

(3)(A) The used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor shall mail or otherwise deliver the statement required under paragraph (2) of this subsection to the department within 72 hours of the completion of the transaction, requesting that the department cancel the Georgia certificate of title and registration.

(B) Notwithstanding the requirement to mail or otherwise deliver the statement required under paragraph (2) of this subsection to the department, the department shall provide a mechanism for the receipt of the information required to be obtained in the statement by electronic means, at no cost to the used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor, in lieu of the physical delivery of the statement, in which case the used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor shall maintain the original statement for a period of not less than two years.

(C) Within 48 hours of each day's close of business, the used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor who purchases or receives motor vehicles for scrap or for parts shall deliver in a format approved by the department, either by facsimile or by other electronic means to be made available by the department by July 1, 2011, a list of all such vehicles purchased that day for scrap or for parts. That list shall contain the following information:

(i) The name, address, and contact information for the reporting entity;

(ii) The vehicle identification numbers of such vehicles;

(iii) The dates such vehicles were obtained;

(iv) The names of the individuals or entities from whom the vehicles were obtained, for use by law enforcement personnel and appropriate governmental agencies only;

(v) A statement of whether the vehicles were, or will be, crushed or disposed of, or offered for sale or other purposes;

(vi) A statement of whether the vehicle is intended for export out of the United States; and

(vii) The National Motor Vehicle Title Information System identification number of the business acquiring the vehicle.

There shall be no charge to either a used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor associated with providing this information to the department.

(D) For purposes of this subsection, the term 'motor vehicle' shall not include a vehicle which has been crushed or flattened by mechanical means such that it is no longer the motor vehicle as described by the certificate of title, or such that the vehicle identification number is no longer visible or accessible, in which case the purchasing or receiving used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor shall verify that the seller has reported the vehicles in accordance with this subsection. Such verification may be in the form of a certification from the seller or contract between the seller and the purchasing or receiving used motor vehicle parts dealer or scrap metal processor which clearly identifies the seller by a government issued photograph identification card, or employer identification number, and shall be maintained for a period of not less than two years.

(E) The information obtained by the department in accordance with this subsection shall be reported to the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System, in a format which will satisfy the requirement for reporting this information, in accordance with rules adopted by the United States Department of Justice in 28 C.F.R. 25.56.

(F) The information obtained by the department in accordance with this subsection shall be made available only to law enforcement agencies, and for purposes of canceling certificates of title, and shall otherwise be considered to be confidential business information of the respective reporting entities.

(G) All records required under the provisions of this Code section shall be maintained for a period of two years by the reporting entity and shall include a scanned or photocopied copy of the seller's or seller's representative's driver's license or state issued identification card."

SECTION 2.

Said chapter is further amended by revising Code Section 40-3-90, relating to felonies involving certificates of title, as follows:

"40-3-90.

A person who, with fraudulent intent:

(1) Alters, forges, or counterfeits a certificate of title;

(2) Alters or forges an assignment of a certificate of title or an assignment or release of a security interest on a certificate of title or a form the commissioner prescribed;

(3) Has possession of or uses a certificate of title knowing it to have been altered, forged, or counterfeited;

(4) Uses a false or fictitious name or address or makes a material false statement, or fails to disclose a security interest, or conceals any other material fact in an application for a certificate of title;

(5) Alters or forges a notice of a transaction concerning a security interest or lien reflected on the certificate of title as provided by Code Section 40-3-27; or

(6) Knowingly falsifies any information on the statement required by paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of Code Section 40-3-36; or

(7) Willfully violates any other provision of this chapter after having previously violated the same or any other provision of this chapter and having been convicted of that act in a court of competent jurisdiction

shall be guilty of a felony."

SECTION 3.

Chapter 8 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to equipment and inspection of motor vehicles, is amended by revising of subsections (b) and (d) of Code Section 40-8-76, relating to safety belts and child restraint systems, as follows:

"(b)(1) Every driver who transports a child under six eight years of age in a passenger automobile, van, or pickup truck, other than a taxicab as defined by Code Section 33-34-5.1 or a public transit vehicle as defined by Code Section 16-5-20, shall, while such motor vehicle is in motion and operated on a public road, street, or highway of this state, provide for the proper restraint of such child in a child passenger restraining system appropriate for such child's height and weight and approved by the United States Department of Transportation under provisions of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213 in effect on January 1, 1983, or at the time of manufacture, subject to the following specific requirements and exceptions:

(A) Any such child weighing at least 40 pounds may be secured by a lap belt when:

(i) The vehicle is not equipped with both lap and shoulder belts; or

(ii) Not including the driver's seat, the vehicle is equipped with one or more lap and shoulder belts that are all being used to properly restrain other children;

(B) Any such child shall be properly restrained in a rear seat of the motor vehicle consistent with the requirements of this paragraph. If the vehicle has no rear seating position appropriate for correctly restraining a child or all appropriate rear seating positions are occupied by other children, any such child may be properly restrained in a front seat consistent with the requirements of this paragraph;

(C) A driver shall not be deemed to be complying with the provisions of this paragraph unless any child passenger restraining system required by this paragraph is installed and being used in accordance with the manufacturer's directions for such system; and

(D) The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply when the child's parent or guardian either obtains a physician's written statement that a physical or medical condition of the child prevents placing or restraining him or her in the manner required by this paragraph. If the parent or guardian can show the child's height is over 4 feet and 9 inches, such child shall be restrained in a safety belt as required in Code Section 40-8-76.1.

(2) Upon a first conviction of an offense under this subsection, the defendant shall be punished by a fine of not more than $50.00, except in the case of a child who is five six or seven years of age, if the defendant shows to the court having jurisdiction of the case that a child passenger restraining system meeting the applicable requirements of this subsection has been purchased by him or her after the time of the offense and prior to the court appearance, the court may waive or suspend the fine for such first conviction. This exception shall apply until January 1, 2005 2012. Upon a second or subsequent conviction of an offense under this subsection, the defendant shall be punished by a fine of not more than $100.00. No court shall impose any additional fees or surcharges to a fine for such a violation. The court imposing a fine for any violation of this Code section shall forward a record of the disposition of the cases annually to the Department of Public Safety Driver Services for the sole purpose of data collection on a county by county basis."

"(d) The provisions of this Code section shall not apply to buses, as defined in paragraph (7) of Code Section 40-1-1, used in the transport of children over four years of age until July 1, 2007 2012, provided that the bus is operated by a licensed or commissioned child care facility, has a current annual transportation safety inspection certificate as required by the appropriate licensing body, and has evidence of being inspected for use by a child care facility. If the bus is not a school bus, as defined in paragraph (55) of Code Section 40-1-1, or a multifunction school activities bus, as defined in 49 C.F.R. 571.3(B), each child over four years of age and under six eight years of age shall be properly restrained by a safety belt child passenger restraining system. Multifunction school activities buses, as defined in 49 C.F.R. 571.3(B), shall not be required to transport children five years of age or older in a child passenger restraining system."

SECTION 4.

Said chapter is further amended by revising paragraph (3) of subsection (e) of Code Section 40-8-76.1, relating to use of safety belts in passenger vehicles, as follows:

"(3) Each minor six eight years of age or older who is an occupant of a passenger vehicle shall, while such passenger vehicle is being operated on a public road, street, or highway of this state, be restrained by a seat safety belt approved under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. In any case where a minor passenger six eight years of age or older fails to comply with the requirements of this paragraph, the driver of the passenger vehicle shall be guilty of the offense of failure to secure a seat safety belt on a minor and, upon conviction thereof, may be fined not more than $25.00. The court imposing such a fine shall forward a record of the court disposition of the case of failure to secure a seat safety belt on a minor to the Department of Driver Services."

SECTION 5.

Chapter 47 of Title 43 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to used motor vehicles and parts dealers, is amended in Code Section 43-47-10, relating to investigations of licensees and sanctions, by revising subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) as follows:

"(B) Any of those activities described in paragraphs (1) through (5) (6) of Code Section 40-3-90; or"

SECTION 6.

Sections 1, 2, and 5 of this Act shall become effective on January 1, 2012. Sections 3 and 4 of this Act shall become effective on July 1, 2011.

SECTION 7.

All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.