H. B. 4389


(By Delegates Campbell and Love)
[Introduced February 8, 1994; referred to the
Committee on Roads and Transportation.]




A BILL to amend and reenact section sixteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section three, article ten of said chapter, all relating to establishing a biennial registration system for certain Class A motor vehicles, establishing a three-year registration period for Class G, Class R and Class T vehicles, and authorizing the commissioner to adopt multiyear registration systems for other classes of vehicles.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That section sixteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted;, and that section three, article ten of said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. ORIGINAL AND RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION; ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES OF TITLE.

§ 17A - 3 - 16. Expiration of registration and certificates of title.

(a) Every vehicle registration under this chapter and every registration card and registration plate issued hereunder shall expire at midnight on the thirtieth day of June of the fiscal year for which issued: last day of the month designated by the commissioner: Provided, That the commissioner may extend the period during which said registration plates may be used.

Certificates of title need not be renewed annually but shall remain valid until canceled by the department division for cause or upon a transfer of any interest shown therein.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or of any provision of this chapter, the commissioner shall adopt, for the vehicles set forth below which are subject to registration hereunder, a staggered or multiyear registration system. whereby the registration of all such vehicles shall be for a period of twelve consecutive calendar months, the expiration dates thereof to be staggered throughout the year.
(1) On or after the first day of July January, one thousand nine hundred seventy-eight, ninety-four, all Class A motor vehicles designated by the commissioner as defined in section one, article ten of this chapter, shall be registered for a period of twelve twenty-four consecutive calendar months. There hereby are established twelve registration periods, each of which shall start on the first day of each calendar month of the year and shall end on the last day of the twelfth month from date of beginning. The period ending January thirty-first shall be designated the first period, that ending February twenty-eighth (twenty-ninth) shall be designated the second; that ending March thirty-first shall be designated the third; that ending April thirtieth shall be designated the fourth; that ending May thirty-first shall be designated the fifth; that ending June thirtieth shall be designated the sixth; that ending July thirty-first shall be designated the seventh; that ending August thirty-first shall be designated the eighth; that ending September thirtieth shall be designated the ninth; that ending October thirty-first shall be designated the tenth; that ending November thirtieth shall be designated the eleventh; and that ending December thirty-first shall be designated the twelfth.
(2) All Class A motor vehicles, which are operated for the first time upon the public highways of this state to and including the fifteenth day of any given month shall be subject to registration and payment of fee for the twelve twenty-four month period commencing the first day of the month of operation; such motor vehicles operated for the first time upon the public highways of this state on and after the sixteenth day of any given month shall be subject to registration and payment of fee for the twelve twenty-four month period commencing the first day of the month of the next following calendar month.
(3) During the time necessary to accomplish the change from the present system of annual monthly staggered registration to the monthly series biennial monthly staggered registration system, the commissioner may require payment for either a twelve-month or a twenty-four month registration period in order to equalize the number of vehicle registration expirations over the two-year registration cycle. trucks with gross weights of not more than eight thousand pounds, subject to registration on and after July first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-eight, shall be registered for one of twelve registration periods, which shall vary in length from a minimum of six consecutive calendar months to a maximum of seventeen consecutive calendar months as hereinafter provided. During this transitory period the registration fees shall be computed on a basis of one twelfth of the annual fee per month. In the order of the receipt of applications for registration of motor vehicles by the owners thereof, the commissioner shall allocate to each of the twelve registration periods such number of motor vehicles as will, in his judgment, as uniformly as practicable, distribute the clerical work of registering such vehicles throughout the year. In determining the number of registrations to be allocated to any given period, he may take into consideration the volume of registration of trucks and other vehicles not under the monthly series registration system. The twelve registration periods necessary to accomplish the change from the present system of annual registration to the monthly series system are established as follows: Each period shall commence July first, one thousand nine hundred seventy- eight. The first period shall expire December thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-eight; the second, January thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the third, February twenty-eighth, one thousand nine hundred seventy- nine; the fourth, March thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the fifth, April thirtieth, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the sixth, May thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the seventh, June thirtieth, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the eighth, July thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the ninth, August thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the tenth, September thirtieth, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; the eleventh, October thirty-first, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine; and the twelfth, November thirtieth, one thousand nine hundred seventy-nine.
(4) Motor vehicles, other than those exempted above, not previously registered in this state and operated upon the highways of this state for the first time after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred seventy-eight, shall be registered for a full twelve-month period without regard to the varying periods of registration provided for during the period of change to the staggered registration system: Provided, That the commissioner may initially register a motor vehicle for less than a twelve-month period when in his opinion such fractional registration shall tend to fulfill the purpose of the monthly series registration system.
(c) On or after the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, all Class G, Class R and Class T vehicles shall be registered for a maximum period of three years or portion thereof based on the number of years remaining in the three-year period.
(d) The commissioner, by rule promulgated in accordance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, may, with the advice and consent of the secretary of tax and revenue and the public service commission, adopt a system of multiyear registration for any other class of vehicle.
 ARTICLE 10. FEES FOR REGISTRATION, LICENSING, ETC.
§ 17A - 10 - 3. Registration fees for vehicles equipped with pneumatic tires.

The following registration fees for the classes indicated shall be paid annually to the division for the registration of vehicles subject to registration hereunder when equipped with pneumatic tires: Provided, That the registration fees and any other fees required by this chapter for Class A vehicles under the biennial staggered registration system shall be paid biennially to the division: Provided, however, That the registration fees and any other fees required by this chapter for Class G, Class R and Class T vehicles shall be paid to the division for a maximum period of three years or portion thereof based on the number of years remaining in the three-year period.

The commissioner, by rule promulgated in accordance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, may, with the advice and consent of the secretary of tax and revenue and the public service commission, adopt a system of multiyear registration for any other class of vehicles.
The fees paid to the division for a multiyear registration provided by this chapter shall be the same as the annual registration fee established by this section, and any other fee required by this chapter multiplied by the number of years for which the registration is issued.
Class A. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of this class is as follows:
(1) For motor vehicles of a weight of three thousand pounds or less -- twenty-five dollars.
(2) For motor vehicles of a weight of three thousand and one pounds to four thousand pounds -- thirty dollars.
(3) For motor vehicles of a weight in excess of four thousand pounds -- thirty-six dollars.
(4) For motor vehicles designed as trucks with declared gross weights of four thousand pounds or less -- twenty-five dollars.
(5) For motor vehicles designed as trucks with declared gross weights of four thousand and one pounds to eight thousand pounds -- thirty dollars.
For the purpose of determining the weight, the actual weight of the vehicle shall be taken: Provided, That for vehicles owned by churches, or by trustees for churches, which vehicles are regularly used for transporting parishioners to and from church services, no license fee shall be charged, but notwithstanding such exemption, the certificate of registration and license plates shall be obtained the same as other cards and plates under this article.
Class B, Class E and Class K. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of these three classes is as follows:
(1) For declared gross weights of eight thousand and one pounds to sixteen thousand pounds -- twenty-eight dollars plus five dollars for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of such vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds eight thousand pounds.
(2) For declared gross weights greater than sixteen thousand pounds, but less than fifty-five thousand pounds -- seventy-eight dollars and fifty cents plus ten dollars for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of such vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds sixteen thousand pounds.
(3) For declared gross weights of fifty-five thousand pounds or more -- seven hundred thirty-seven dollars and fifty cents plus fifteen dollars and seventy-five cents for each one thousand pounds or fraction thereof that the gross weight of such vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds fifty-five thousand pounds.
Class C and Class L. The registration fee for all vehicles of these two classes is seventeen dollars and fifty cents except that semitrailers, full trailers, pole trailers, and converter gear registered as Class C and Class L may be registered for a period of ten years at a fee of one hundred dollars.
Class G. The registration fee for each motorcycle is eight dollars.
Class H. The registration fee for all vehicles for this class operating entirely within the state is five dollars; and for vehicles engaged in interstate transportation of persons, the registration fee is the amount of the fees provided by this section for Class B, Class E and Class K reduced by the amount that the mileage of such vehicles operated in states other than West Virginia bears to the total mileage operated by such vehicles in all states under a formula to be established by the division of motor vehicles.
Class J. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of this class is eighty-five dollars. Ambulances and hearses used exclusively as such are exempt from the above special fees.
Class R. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is twelve dollars.
Class S. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is seventeen dollars and fifty cents.
Class T. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is eight dollars.
Class U. The registration fee for all vehicles of this class is fifty-seven dollars and fifty cents.
Class Farm Truck. The registration fee for all motor vehicles of this class is as follows: (1) For farm trucks of declared gross weights of eight thousand and one pounds to sixteen thousand pounds -- thirty dollars; (2) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of sixteen thousand and one pounds to twenty-two thousand pounds -- sixty dollars; (3) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of twenty-two thousand and one pounds to twenty-eight thousand pounds -- ninety dollars; (4) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of twenty-eight thousand and one pounds to thirty-four thousand pounds -- one hundred fifteen dollars; (5) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of thirty-four thousand and one pounds to forty-four thousand pounds -- one hundred sixty dollars; (6) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of forty-four thousand and one pounds to fifty-four thousand pounds -- two hundred five dollars; and (7) for farm trucks of declared gross weights of fifty-four thousand and one pounds to sixty-four thousand pounds -- two hundred fifty dollars.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to remove an obsolete reference to all vehicles expiring June 30 of each year and to establish a two-year staggered registration cycle for Class A passenger vehicles which are currently registered under the annual staggered registration cycle. The bill also provides for a three-year registration cycle for Class T (mostly boat trailers), Class G (motorcycle) and Class R (recreational travel trailers). The bill further provides that the commissioner may establish a multiyear registration program for other remaining classes of vehicles in cooperation with the tax department and the Public Service Commission.

The bill requires that the fees collected for multiyear registrations are calculated by multiplying the annual fees by the number of years for which the registration is issued.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.