CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.



                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)

                            CHAMBER ACTION
              Senate                               House
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  4  ______________________________________________________________

  5                                           ORIGINAL STAMP BELOW

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10  ______________________________________________________________

11  The Committee on Transportation offered the following:

12

13         Amendment (with title amendment) 

14  Remove everything after the enacting clause

15

16  and insert:

17         Section 1.  Subsections (2) and (3) and paragraph (a)

18  of subsection (4) of section 316.545, Florida Statutes, are

19  amended to read:

20         316.545  Weight and load unlawful; special fuel and

21  motor fuel tax enforcement; inspection; penalty; review.--

22         (2)(a)  Whenever an officer, upon weighing a vehicle or

23  combination of vehicles with load, determines that the axle

24  weight or gross weight is unlawful, the officer may require

25  the driver to stop the vehicle in a suitable place and remain

26  standing until a determination can be made as to the amount of

27  weight thereon and, if overloaded, the amount of penalty to be

28  assessed as provided herein. However, any axle, internal

29  bridge, external bridge, or gross weight over and beyond 6,000

30  pounds beyond the maximum herein set shall be shifted,

31  equalized, or unloaded and all material so unloaded shall be

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)





  1  cared for by the owner or operator of the vehicle at the risk

  2  of such owner or operator. Except as otherwise provided in

  3  this chapter, to facilitate compliance with and enforcement of

  4  the weight limits established in s. 316.535, weight tables

  5  published pursuant to s. 316.535(6) shall include a 10-percent

  6  scale tolerance and shall thereby reflect the maximum scaled

  7  weights allowed any vehicle or combination of vehicles. As

  8  used in this section, scale tolerance means the allowable

  9  deviation from legal weights established in s. 316.535.

10  Notwithstanding any other provision of the weight law, if a

11  vehicle or combination of vehicles does not exceed the gross,

12  external bridge, or internal bridge weight limits imposed in

13  s. 316.535 and the driver of such vehicle or combination of

14  vehicles can comply with the requirements of this chapter by

15  shifting or equalizing the load on all wheels or axles and

16  does so when requested by the proper authority, the driver

17  shall not be held to be operating in violation of said weight

18  limits.

19         (b)  The officer shall inspect the license plate or

20  registration certificate of the commercial vehicle, as defined

21  in s. 316.003(66), to determine if its gross weight is in

22  compliance with the declared gross vehicle weight. If its

23  gross weight exceeds the declared weight, the penalty shall be

24  5 cents per pound on the difference between the license fee

25  for the gross vehicle weight range in s. 320.08(4)(a)-(l) for

26  heavy trucks and truck tractors, or s. 320.08(5)(e) for

27  wreckers, and the license fee for the gross vehicle weight

28  range the commercial vehicle is determined to be operating in

29  by its gross weight such weights. In those cases when the

30  commercial vehicle, as defined in s. 316.003(66), is being

31  operated over the highways of the state with a license or

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)





  1  registration that has not been expired for more than 90 days,

  2  the penalty shall be the license fee for the gross vehicle

  3  weight range in s. 320.08(4)(a)-(l) for heavy trucks and truck

  4  tractors, and s. 320.08(5)(e) for wreckers as determined by

  5  its actual gross weight with an expired registration or with

  6  no registration from this or any other jurisdiction or is not

  7  registered under the applicable provisions of chapter 320, the

  8  penalty herein shall apply on the basis of 5 cents per pound

  9  on that scaled weight which exceeds 35,000 pounds on laden

10  truck tractor-semitrailer combinations or tandem trailer truck

11  combinations, 10,000 pounds on laden straight trucks or

12  straight truck-trailer combinations, or 10,000 pounds on any

13  unladen commercial motor vehicle. If the license plate or

14  registration has not been expired for more than 90 days, or

15  the vehicle has never been registered in this or any other

16  jurisdiction, the penalty imposed under this paragraph shall

17  be twice the amount as that applied to a vehicle with a

18  current license or registration under this paragraph may not

19  exceed $1,000. In the case of a commercial vehicle operating

20  under special restrictions mobile equipment as defined in s.

21  316.003(48), which qualifies for the reduced license taxes tax

22  provided for in s. 320.08(4)(m) and (n) and (5)(b) and (d),

23  being operated on the highways of the state with an expired

24  registration or otherwise not properly registered under the

25  applicable provisions of chapter 320, a penalty of twice the

26  amount of the reduced license fee $75 shall apply in addition

27  to any other penalty which may apply in accordance with this

28  chapter. A vehicle found in violation of this section may be

29  detained until the owner or operator produces evidence that

30  the vehicle has been properly registered. Any costs incurred

31  by the retention of the vehicle shall be the sole

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)





  1  responsibility of the owner. A person who has been assessed a

  2  penalty pursuant to this paragraph for failure to have a valid

  3  vehicle registration certificate pursuant to the provisions of

  4  chapter 320 is not subject to the delinquent fee authorized in

  5  s. 320.07 if such person obtains a valid registration

  6  certificate within 10 working days after such penalty was

  7  assessed.

  8         (c)  An apportioned motor vehicle, as defined in s.

  9  320.01, operating on the highways of this state without being

10  properly licensed and registered shall be subject to the

11  penalties provided in paragraph (b).

12         (d)  Vehicles operating on the highways of this state

13  from nonmember International Registration Plan jurisdictions

14  which are not in compliance with the provisions of s. 316.605

15  shall be subject to the penalties provided in paragraph (b).

16         (e)(c)  Weight limits established and posted for a road

17  or bridge pursuant to s. 316.555 and weight limits specified

18  in special permits issued pursuant to s. 316.550 shall be

19  deemed to include all allowable tolerances. In those cases

20  when a vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds the weight

21  limits established and posted for a road or bridge pursuant to

22  s. 316.555, or exceeds the weight limits permitted in a

23  special permit issued pursuant to s. 316.550, the penalty

24  shall be assessed as provided for in subsection (3) 5 cents

25  per pound on the difference between the scale weight of the

26  vehicle and the weight limits for such posted road or bridge

27  or permitted in such special permit. However, if a special

28  permit is declared invalid in accordance with rules

29  promulgated pursuant to s. 316.550, the penalties imposed in

30  subsection (3), not to exceed $3,000, shall apply to those

31  weights which exceed the limits established in s. 316.535.

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)





  1         (3)  Any person who violates the overloading provisions

  2  of this chapter shall be conclusively presumed to have damaged

  3  the highways of this state by reason of such overloading,

  4  which damage is hereby fixed as follows:

  5         (a)  When the excess weight is 500 200 pounds or less

  6  than the maximum herein provided, the penalty shall be $15.

  7  $10;

  8         (b)  Five cents per pound for each pound of weight in

  9  excess of the maximum herein provided when the excess weight

10  is more than 500 pounds but is not more than 6,000 pounds;

11  seven and one-half cents for each pound when the excess weight

12  is more than 6,000 pounds but is not more than 10,000 pounds;

13  and ten cents for each pound when the excess weight is more

14  than 10,000 exceeds 200 pounds. However, whenever the gross

15  weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles does not

16  exceed the maximum allowable gross weight, the maximum fine

17  for the first 600 pounds of unlawful axle weight shall be $10;

18         (c)  An apportioned motor vehicle, as defined in s.

19  320.01, operating on the highways of this state without being

20  properly licensed and registered shall be subject to the

21  penalties as herein provided; and

22         (d)  Vehicles operating on the highways of this state

23  from nonmember International Registration Plan jurisdictions

24  which are not in compliance with the provisions of s. 316.605

25  shall be subject to the penalties as herein provided.

26         (4)(a)  No commercial vehicle, as defined in s.

27  316.003(66), shall be operated over the highways of this state

28  unless it has been properly registered under the provisions of

29  s. 207.004. Whenever any law enforcement officer identified in

30  s. 207.023(1), upon inspecting the vehicle or combination of

31  vehicles, determines that the vehicle is in violation of s.

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                                                   HOUSE AMENDMENT

                                                   Bill No. HB 623

    Amendment No. 001 (for drafter's use only)





  1  207.004, a penalty in the amount of $50 shall be assessed, and

  2  the vehicle may shall be detained until payment is collected

  3  by the law enforcement officer.

  4         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

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  7  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============

  8  And the title is amended as follows:

  9         On page 1, line 3,

10  remove:  all of said lines

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12  and insert:

13         316.545, F.S.; revising penalty provisions for

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