Bill Text: MS HB946 | 2015 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Public Safety Verification and Enforcement Act; revise.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2015-04-20 - Approved by Governor [HB946 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2015-HB946-Enrolled.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2015 Regular Session
To: Insurance
By: Representative Gipson
House Bill 946
(As Sent to Governor)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 63-16-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PUBLIC SAFETY VERIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT ACT TO DELETE CERTAIN PROVISIONS REGARDING THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAX COLLECTORS; TO REVISE THE DATE BY WHICH THE SYSTEM SHALL BE INSTALLED AND OPERATIONAL; TO AMEND SECTION 63-16-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PUBLIC SAFETY VERIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT ACT TO DELETE CERTAIN PROVISIONS' APPLICATION TO OWNERS OF MOTOR VEHICLES; TO AMEND SECTION 63-16-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PUBLIC SAFETY VERIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT ACT TO DELETE CERTAIN PROVISIONS REGARDING THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAX COLLECTORS; TO REPEAL SECTION 63-16-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH REQUIRES EVERY OWNER OF A MOTOR VEHICLE TO BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH MANDATORY MOTOR VEHICLE LIABILITY INSURANCE COVERAGE TO RECEIVE REGISTRATION OR RENEWAL OF; TO AMEND SECTION 63-16-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PUBLIC SAFETY VERIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT ACT TO DELETE CERTAIN PROVISIONS REGARDING THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 63-16-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
63-16-3. (1) The
Department of Public Safety, hereinafter referred to in this section as
"department," in cooperation with the Commissioner of Insurance and
the Department of Revenue, shall establish an accessible common carrier-based
motor vehicle insurance verification system to verify the compliance of a motor
vehicle * * * with motor vehicle liability policy requirements under the
Mississippi Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Law.
(2) The department, in cooperation with the Department of Revenue if applicable, may contract with a private vendor or vendors to establish and maintain the system.
(3) The system must:
(a) Send requests to insurers for verification of motor vehicle liability insurance using electronic services established by the insurers through the Internet, World Wide Web, or a similar proprietary or common carrier electronic system in compliance with the specifications and standards of the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration and other applicable industry standards;
(b) Include appropriate provisions to secure its data against unauthorized access and to maintain a record of all requests and responses;
(c) Be accessible,
without fee, to authorized personnel of the department, * * * the courts, law
enforcement personnel, * * * and other entities authorized by the department * * * under the
provisions of Section 63-16-7;
(d) Be able to
interface with existing department * * * systems;
(e) Be able to be accessed by authorized users via a secure web browser;
(f) Not more often
than every thirty (30) days, receive insurance * * * information from
insurers under specifications and standards set forth in paragraph (a) of this
subsection or other data file formats as approved by the department to
identify motor vehicle * * * insurance policy information; however, no
insurer shall be required to provide information in a format other than those
set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration
"Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended;
(g) Provide a means by
which low-volume insurers that are unable to deploy an online interface with
the system can report insurance policy data to the department * * * or their designee
for inclusion in the system;
(h) Provide a means to track separately or distinguish motor vehicles that are subject to a certificate of insurance under Section 63-15-39 or 63-15-41, a certificate of self-insurance under Section 63-15-53, a bond under Section 63-15-49, or a certificate of deposit of money or securities under Section 63-15-51;
(i) Distinguish motor vehicles that are exempt from the provisions of this chapter;
(j) Be available
twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week, subject to reasonable
allowances for scheduled maintenance or temporary system failures, to verify
the insurance status of any motor vehicle in a manner prescribed by the
department * * *; and
(k) Be installed and
operational not later than * * * March 1, 2016, * * * followed by an appropriate
testing period of not less than six (6) months.
(4) Every insurer shall
cooperate with the department and the Insurance Department * * * in establishing and maintaining the
system and shall provide * * *access to motor vehicle liability policy status and
information to verify liability coverage for * * * a motor vehicle insured by that company
that is registered in this state * * *.
* * *
SECTION 2. Section 63-16-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
63-16-5. (1) A law enforcement officer or authorized employee of a law enforcement agency may, during the course of a traffic stop or accident investigation, access the verification system established under Section 63-16-3 to verify whether a motor vehicle is covered by a valid motor vehicle liability policy in at least the minimum amounts required under Section 63-15-3(j).
(2) The response received
from the system supersedes an insurance card produced by a motor vehicle * * * operator, and notwithstanding the
display of an insurance card by the * * * operator, the law enforcement officer
may issue a complaint and notice to appear to the * * * operator for a violation of the
Mississippi Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Law. A law
enforcement officer may exercise discretion in issuing a citation during the
first sixty (60) days after proof of temporary insurance is issued by an
insurance company, if the verification system shows that the insured's policy
is expired and the operator provides proof of insurance with a new insurance
company or a new insurance card.
(3) Except upon reasonable cause to believe that a driver has violated another traffic regulation or that the driver's motor vehicle is unsafe or not equipped as required by law, a law enforcement officer may not use the verification system to stop a driver for operating a motor vehicle in violation of this chapter.
SECTION 3. Section 63-16-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
63-16-7. (1) The
Department of Public Safety, hereinafter referred to in this section as
"department," * * *and the Department of Revenue shall administer and enforce the
provisions of this chapter, as applicable, and shall make rules * * * necessary for the
administration of the motor vehicle insurance verification system created under
Section 63-16-3.
(2) The rules must:
(a) Establish
standards and procedures for accessing the system by authorized personnel of
the department, * * * the courts, law enforcement personnel * * * and any other
entities authorized by the department * * * that are
consistent with specifications and standards of the Insurance Industry
Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration and other applicable industry
standards;
(b) Provide for the
suspension of * * * a driver's license when required by this
chapter;
(c) Prohibit the
reinstatement of a * * * driver's license unless the applicable fines have
been paid; and
(d) Provide for * * * insurance * * * information from
insurers, not more often than every thirty (30) days, to identify motor
vehicle * * * insurance policy * * * information; however, no
insurer shall be required to provide such information in a format other than
those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle
Administration "Insurance Data Transfer Guide," as amended.
(3) The department * * * may adopt
additional rules to:
(a) Assist authorized users in interpreting responses received from the motor vehicle insurance verification system and determining the appropriate action to be taken as a result of a response; and
(b) Otherwise clarify system operations and business rules.
SECTION 4. Section 63-16-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, which requires every owner of a motor vehicle to be in compliance with mandatory motor vehicle liability insurance coverage to receive registration or renewal of, is repealed.
SECTION 5. Section 63-16-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
63-16-13. (1) If
the * * * operator
of a motor vehicle being operated on the public roads, streets or highways of
the State of Mississippi or registered in the State of Mississippi * * * has been found failing to have
motor vehicle liability insurance in at least the minimum amounts required
under Section 63-15-3(j), * * *the Commissioner of Public Safety, the Commissioner of Revenue or
a court of proper jurisdiction shall suspend the * * *
operator's driving privilege and shall impose a civil penalty in an amount of
Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00) upon a first violation, in an amount of Four
Hundred Dollars ($400.00) upon a second violation and in an amount of Five
Hundred Dollars ($500.00) upon a third or subsequent violation. If suspended,
the * * *
driving privilege shall not be reinstated until the * * * operator has motor vehicle
liability insurance in at least the minimum amounts required under Section 63-15-3(j)
and has paid the civil penalties imposed and driver's license reinstatement
fees imposed by the Department of Public Safety. Any person shall have the
right to appeal any suspension or civil penalty under this section in a court
of proper jurisdiction. If the matter is appealed and a violation is found,
then the court shall not reduce, suspend or suspend the execution of any
penalty imposed under the provisions of this subsection, in whole or in part.
It shall be the duty of the county prosecuting attorney, an attorney employed
under the provisions of Section 19-3-49, or in the event there is no such
prosecuting attorney for the county, the duty of the district attorney to
represent the state in any appeal held under this subsection. Civil penalties
collected under this subsection shall be deposited into the special fund
created under subsection (2) of this section. However, if the appeal of such
civil penalty would be under the proper jurisdiction of a municipal court, One
Hundred Dollars ($100.00) of the funds from such civil penalty shall be
deposited in the general fund of that municipality. If the appeal of such
civil penalty would be under the proper jurisdiction of any of the courts of a
county, One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) of the funds from such civil penalty
shall be deposited in the general fund of that county. A person convicted of a
civil violation under this subsection (1) shall not be convicted of a criminal
offense under Section 63-15-4(4) arising from the same incident.
(2) (a) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be designated as the "Uninsured Motorist Identification Fund." The fund shall consist of monies deposited therein as provided under subsection (1) of this section and monies from any other source designated for deposit into such fund. Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund, and any interest earned or investment earnings on amounts in the fund shall be deposited to the credit of the fund; however, one-half (1/2) of any monies in excess of the amount needed to defray the expenses and costs of the verification system created under Section 63-16-3 remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall be transferred to the Motor Vehicle Ad Valorem Tax Reduction Fund created under Section 27-51-105, and one-half (1/2) of any monies in excess of the amount needed to defray the expenses and costs of the verification system created under Section 63-16-3 remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall be transferred to the Mississippi Trauma Care Systems Fund created under Section 41-59-75.
(b) Monies in the
special fund may be used by the Department of Public Safety * * *, upon
appropriation by the Legislature, only for the purpose of defraying expenses
and costs for the motor vehicle insurance verification system created under
Section 63-16-3. In addition, at any time during a fiscal year, if the
Department of Public Safety determines that funds in the Law Enforcement
Officers and Fire Fighters Death Benefits Trust Fund created under Section 45-2-1
are insufficient, the department may request the State Fiscal Officer to
transfer funds from the Uninsured Motorist Identification Fund. The State
Fiscal Officer may make an appropriate transfer if he determines that the funds
in the Law Enforcement Officers and Fire Fighters Death Benefits Trust Fund are
insufficient and the funds in the Uninsured Motorist Identification Fund will
be sufficient for defraying the expenses and costs for the motor vehicle
insurance verification system created under Section 63-16-3. Monies in the
fund used for the purposes described in this paragraph (b) shall be in addition
to other funds available from any other source for such purposes.
SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.
