New Jersey-2010-A735-Introduced

An Act concerning truck inspections and amending P.L.1950, c.142, P.L.1985, c.415, and P.L.1995, c.157, and supplementing chapter 8 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 5 of P.L.1950, c.142 (C.39:3-84.3) is amended to read as follows:

5. a. Officers shall have authority as set forth in paragraphs (1) through (3) of this subsection to require the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee of any vehicle or combination of vehicles found on any public road, street, or highway or any public or quasi-public property in this State to facilitate and permit the measurement or weighing of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, for the purpose of determining whether the size or weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, is in excess of that permitted in this Title:

(1) Officers of the Division of State Police and any local law enforcement officers who meet the requirements of this paragraph shall have the exclusive authority to conduct random roadside examinations for the purpose of determining whether size or weight is in excess of that permitted in this Title, and [officers of the Division of State Police] shall have the authority, with or without probable cause to believe that the size or weight is in excess of that permitted, to require the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee, to stop, drive or otherwise move to a location for measurement or weighing and submit the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, to measurement or weighing[;] . In the event that a local law enforcement agency purchases for the use of its officers the same or equivalent equipment as that used by the officers of the Division of State Police to conduct random roadside examinations pursuant to this paragraph, and ensures that the officers have access to the commercial vehicle inspection database used by the State Police, the law enforcement officers of that agency who are properly trained and certified to use the equipment and to conduct random roadside inspections may also conduct random roadside examinations and perform the other duties enumerated in this paragraph. A vehicle or combination of vehicles shall not be stopped for a random roadside inspection by a State Police officer or a local law enforcement officer pursuant to this paragraph if it has been stopped for a random roadside inspection anywhere in the United States within the previous 24 hours

(2) Police or peace officers or inspectors appointed by any municipality or county that does not determine to conduct random roadside examinations pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection shall have the authority to require the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee to stop, drive or otherwise move to a location for measurement or weighing and submit the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, to measurement or weighing, only if the officer has probable cause to believe that the size or weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, is in excess of that permitted by this Title; and

(3) [The] Except as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection, the Division of State Police and the director shall have the exclusive authority to establish and operate locations for the measurement and weighing of vehicles, including load and contents, and all measuring and weighing devices or scales employed at such locations shall be approved and certified by the State Superintendent of Weights and Measures or the State Superintendent's agent. Copies of documents displaying the State Superintendent's seal or certification shall be prima facie evidence of the reliability and accuracy of the measuring or weighing devices or scales utilized.

b. Whenever the officer, upon measuring or weighing a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, determines that the size or weight is in excess of the limits permitted in this Title, the officer or inspector shall require the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee to stop the vehicle or combination of vehicles in a suitable place and remain in that place until a portion of the load or contents of the vehicle or combination of vehicles is removed by the driver, operator, owner, lessee, bailee or duly appointed agent thereof, as may be necessary to conform or reduce the size or weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, to those limits as permitted under this act, or permitted by the certificate of registration for the vehicle or combination of vehicles, whichever may be lower. All materials so unloaded or removed shall be cared for by the driver, owner, operator, lessee or bailee of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, or duly appointed agent thereof, at the risk, responsibility and liability of the driver, owner, operator, lessee, bailee or duly appointed agent thereof.

c. No vehicle or combination of vehicles shall be deemed to be in violation of the weight limitation provision of this act, when, upon examination by the officer, the dispatch papers for the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, show it is proceeding from its last preceding freight pickup point within the State of New Jersey by a reasonably expeditious route to the nearest available scales or to the first available scales in the general direction towards which the vehicle or combination of vehicles has been dispatched, or is returning from such scales after weighing-in to the last preceding pickup point.

d. When the officer determines that a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, is in violation of the weight limitations of this Title as provided at paragraph (1) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84; paragraph (2) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84; paragraph (3) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84; or paragraph (5) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 relative to maximum gross axle weights, but is within the permissible maximum gross vehicle weight of this Title as provided at paragraph (4) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 or paragraph (5) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84, whichever is applicable, the driver, operator, owner, lessee, bailee or duly appointed agent thereof shall be permitted, before proceeding, to redistribute the weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles or the load or contents of the vehicle or combination of vehicles so that no axle or combination of consecutive axles are in excess of the limits set by this act, in which event there is no violation.

e. When the officer determines that a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, is in violation of the height, width or length limits of this Title as provided at subsection a. of R.S.39:3-84, the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee of the vehicle or combination of vehicles or duly appointed agent thereof shall be permitted, before proceeding, to adjust, reduce or conform the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, so that the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, are not in excess of the height, width, or length limits set by this act, in which event there is no violation.

f. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, found or operated on any highway in this State which is part of or designated as part of the National Interstate System, as provided at 23 U.S.C. s. 103(e). No arrest shall be made or summons issued for a violation of the weight limitations provided in this act at subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 where the excess weight is no more than 5% of the weight permitted, provided the gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, does not exceed the maximum gross weight of 80,000 pounds as set forth at paragraph (4) of subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84.

g. Any person who presents to the officer, or has in his possession, or who prepares false dispatch papers, that is to say, dispatch papers which do not correspond to the cargo carried, shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $300.

h. Any driver of a vehicle or combination of vehicles who fails or refuses to stop and submit the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, to measurement or weighing, as provided in this Title, or otherwise fails to comply with the provisions of this section, shall be subject to a fine not exceeding $200.00.

i. The owner, lessee, bailee or any one of the aforesaid of any vehicle or combination of vehicles found or operated on any public road, street or highway or on any public or quasi-public property in this State in violation of the height, width or length limits as set forth in subsection a. of R.S.39:3-84 shall be fined not less than $150.00 nor more than $500.00.

j. The owner, lessee, bailee or any one of the aforesaid of any vehicle or combination of vehicles found or operated on any public road, street or highway or on any public or quasi-public property in this State, with a gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, in excess of the weight limitations as provided at subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 or section 3 of P.L.1950, c.142 (C.39:3-84.1) shall be fined an amount equal to $0.02 per pound for each pound of the total excess weight; provided the total excess weight is 10,000 pounds or less, or shall be fined an amount equal to $0.03 per pound for each pound of the total excess weight; provided the total excess weight is more than 10,000 pounds, but in no event shall the fine be less than $50.00. However, in the case of any vehicle or combination of vehicles carrying a sealed ocean container, either the shipper, the consignee or both, shall be liable for a violation of the weight limitations as provided at subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 relative to maximum gross axle weights.

k. Whenever a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including load or contents, is found to be in violation of any two or more of the weight limitations as provided at subsection b. of R.S.39:3-84 or section 3 of P.L.1950, c.142 (C.39:3-84.1), the fine levied shall be only for the violation involving the greater or greatest excess weight.

l. The driver, owner, lessee, bailee or any one of the foregoing of any combination of vehicles found or operated on any public road, street or highway or on any public or quasi-public property in the State in violation of the regulations of the Commissioner of Transportation regarding designated routes for such combinations as provided in subsection e. of R.S. 39:3-84 shall be fined not more than $400 for the first offense, and shall be subject to a fine of $700 for the second offense and a fine of $1,000 for each subsequent offense. The officer may direct that a combination of vehicles so found or operated proceed by the most direct route to a permitted route or return to a permitted route by making use of the route already traversed.

(cf: P.L.1999, c.348, s.3)

2. Section 2 of P.L.1985, c.415 (C.39:5B-31) is amended to read as follows:

2. a. The Superintendent of the State Police may inspect such vehicles, railroad cars, and places of origin or destination in the State of the hazardous materials being transported, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of P.L. 1983, c. 401 and this amendatory and supplementary act. The superintendent may also break such cargo seals on vehicles and railroad cars as may be necessary to inspect vehicles and railroad cars transporting hazardous materials to ascertain that packages as defined in 49 C.F.R. s. 171.8 have been properly classified, described, packaged, marked, labeled, blocked and braced and are in proper condition for shipment.

b. The powers exercised by the superintendent pursuant to this section may also be exercised by police officers of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and by personnel of the Department of Transportation duly authorized by the superintendent. Appropriate personnel of the Department of Environmental Protection duly authorized by the superintendent may, consistent with federal regulations, inspect the contents of packages referred to in subsection a. of this section at places of origin prior to acceptance by the transporter or at places of destination after acceptance by the consignee. In addition, personnel of the Department of Environmental Protection so authorized may conduct, in conjunction with and under the direction of State Police personnel, inspections and break cargo seals as described in subsection a. of this section when at off-highway facilities, including, but not limited to, public truck stops, public rest areas, State weigh stations, and commercial motor vehicle inspection stations. Any appropriately trained local law enforcement officer may conduct inspections and break cargo seals as described in subsection a. of this section of vehicles on any public road, street, or highway or any public or quasi-public property in this State.

c. The Commissioner of Transportation is authorized to adopt, in consultation with the Superintendent of the State Police and pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c. 410 (C. 52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations governing inspection and breaking of cargo seals by those authorized to do so under this section. No person not given specific authority in this section to do so shall break cargo seals under this section or otherwise implement the provisions of this section.

(cf: P.L.1985, c.415, s.2)

3. Section 6 of P.L.1995, c.157 (C.39:8-64) is amended to read as follows:

6. a. The commission, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Transportation and with the approval of the Attorney General, shall establish and implement a periodic inspection program and a roadside enforcement program to implement the standards and test methods adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act. These programs shall be designed to measure exhaust emissions and to inspect emission control apparatus and related items on diesel buses, heavy-duty diesel trucks, and other diesel-powered motor vehicles. The programs shall include, at a minimum, diesel buses and heavy-duty diesel trucks subject to the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act; provided that the commission, in consultation with the Department of Transportation, may exempt vehicles from either program for good cause, which may include that vehicles belonging to an exempted class are, by law, subject to emissions testing in another program. The commission, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection and with the approval of the Attorney General, may, by rule or regulation, expand the periodic inspection program and the roadside enforcement program to include other diesel-powered motor vehicles that are subject to the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act. The commission, in consultation with the Commissioner of Transportation, may, by rule or regulation, impose upon every owner and lessee of a diesel bus, heavy-duty diesel truck, or other diesel-powered motor vehicle subject to periodic inspection the obligation to have the vehicle periodically inspected in a manner determined by the commission in consultation with the Commissioner of Transportation, to effect repairs or to abstain from operating or to limit the operation of a rejected vehicle or a vehicle overdue for inspection, and may take other action necessary or appropriate for implementation of the periodic inspection program. The commission, in consultation with the Commissioner of Transportation, may, by rule or regulation, impose upon every owner and lessee of a diesel bus, heavy-duty diesel truck, or other diesel-powered motor vehicle subject to roadside inspection the obligation to abstain from operating or to limit the operation of a vehicle that has been tested and found to be in violation of the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act, or to effect repairs, and may take other action necessary or appropriate for implementation of the roadside enforcement program. A school bus, as defined pursuant to R.S.39:1-1, shall be exempt from the roadside enforcement program. However, nothing in this subsection allowing or mandating exemptions from the periodic inspection program or the roadside enforcement program shall be construed to limit any other enforcement actions permitted by law.

b. The commission shall exercise all authority, including but not limited to administrative, implementation, enforcement, and penalty authority, in connection with the periodic inspection program for diesel buses and the roadside enforcement program for diesel buses that are under the jurisdiction of the commission pursuant to Titles 27 and 48 of the Revised Statutes or any other law, rule, or regulation. The commission shall consult with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Transportation in conducting the periodic inspection program for diesel buses and the roadside enforcement program for diesel buses that are under the jurisdiction of the commission. Any periodic inspection that may be required pursuant to this act for a diesel bus under the jurisdiction of the commission shall be conducted only in conjunction with any periodic safety inspection required for that diesel bus pursuant to law, rule, or regulation. Any suspension of registration privileges with respect to diesel buses for a violation of this act or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto shall be implemented by the commission.

c. Any appropriately trained local law enforcement officer may conduct roadside inspections of heavy-duty diesel trucks on any public road, street, or highway or any public or quasi-public property in this State to enforce section 3 of P.L.1995, c.157 (C.39:8-61), provided the inspections are based on the same test methods outlined required pursuant to that section.

(cf: P.L.2003, c.13, s.79)

4. (New section) a. Any appropriately trained local law enforcement officer who meets the requirements of this section shall have authority to conduct random roadside safety inspections of any commercial vehicle or combination of vehicles found on any public road, street, or highway or any public or quasi-public property in this State. The officer may require the driver, operator, owner, lessee or bailee of the commercial vehicle or combination of vehicles to submit the vehicle to a full or partial safety inspection, with or without probable cause, for the purpose of determining whether the commercial vehicle or combination of vehicles meets the requirements of this Title.

b. Local law enforcement officers may not perform random roadside safety inspections unless they:

(1) use the same or equivalent equipment as that used by motor vehicle inspection stations or by officers of the Division of State Police;

(2) are properly trained and certified in the use of that equipment; and

(3) have access to the commercial vehicle inspection database used by the State Police.

c. A commercial vehicle or combination of vehicles shall not be stopped for a random roadside safety inspection by a local law enforcement officer or a local law enforcement officer pursuant to this section if it has been stopped for a similar inspection anywhere in the United States within the previous 24 hours.

5. This act shall take effect on the first day of the thirteenth month following enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill would authorize appropriately trained local law enforcement officers to inspect trucks.

Under the bill, local law enforcement officers could conduct random roadside inspections of vehicles and combinations of vehicles to determine of they meet the legal weights and measures restrictions. In order to conduct such inspections, a local law enforcement agency would have to purchase the same or equivalent equipment as that used by the State Police and provide officers access to the commercial vehicle inspection database used by the State Police. The law enforcement officers would have to be properly trained and certified to use the equipment.

Similarly, appropriately trained local law enforcement officers would be authorized by this bill to conduct inspections and break cargo seals of vehicles carrying hazardous materials on public roads or property.

The bill would also allow appropriately trained local law enforcement officers to conduct roadside emissions inspections of heavy-duty diesel trucks on public roads or property, provided the inspections are based on the test methods outlined by the Department of Environmental Protection.

Finally, the bill would authorize local law enforcement officers to conduct random roadside safety inspections of any commercial vehicle or combination of vehicles on public roads or property, provided they:

� use the same or equivalent equipment that is used by motor vehicle inspection stations or by the State Police;

� are properly trained and certified in the use of that equipment; and

� have access to the commercial vehicle inspection database used by the State Police.