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A bill to be entitled

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An act relating to motor vehicles; amending s. 316.515,

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F.S.; revising restrictions on use of certain agriculture-

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related vehicles; providing for exemptions from width

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limitations for certain farming or agricultural equipment;

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providing conditions for use of such equipment;

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authorizing certain movements without an overwideth permit

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from the Department of Transportation; providing lighting

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requirements for certain overwidth equipment; amending s.

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316.535, F.S.; providing an exception to the limitation on

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overall gross weight for vehicles hauling agricultural or

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forestry products on the Interstate Highway System from

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the point of production to the first point of marketing or

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processing; providing an effective date.

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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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     Section 1.  Subsection (5) of section 316.515, Florida

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Statutes, is amended to read:

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     316.515  Maximum width, height, length.--

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     (5) IMPLEMENTS OF HUSBANDRY AND FARM EQUIPMENT;

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AGRICULTURAL TRAILERS; FORESTRY EQUIPMENT; SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.--

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     (a)  Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, straight

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trucks, agricultural tractors, and cotton module movers, not

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exceeding 50 feet in length, or any combination of up to and

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including three implements of husbandry, including the towing

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power unit, and any single agricultural trailer with a load

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thereon or any agricultural implements attached to a towing power

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unit not exceeding 130 inches in width, or a self-propelled

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agricultural implement or an agricultural tractor not exceeding

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130 inches in width, is authorized for the purpose of

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transporting peanuts, grains, soybeans, cotton, hay, straw, or

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other perishable farm products from their point of production to

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the first point of change of custody or of long-term storage, and

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for the purpose of returning to such point of production, or for

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the purpose of moving such tractors, movers, and implements from

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one point of agricultural production to another, by a person

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engaged in the production of any such product or custom hauler,

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if such vehicle or combination of vehicles otherwise complies

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with this section. The Department of Transportation may issue

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overwidth permits for implements of husbandry greater than 130

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inches, but not more than 170 inches, in width. The Department of

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Transportation may issue overlength permits for cotton module

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movers greater than 50 feet but not more than 55 feet in overall

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length. Such vehicles shall be operated in accordance with all

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safety requirements prescribed by law and rules of the Department

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of Transportation.

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     (b)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, equipment

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not exceeding 136 inches in width and not capable of speeds

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exceeding 20 miles per hour which is used exclusively for

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harvesting forestry products is authorized for the purpose of

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transporting equipment from one point of harvest to another point

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of harvest, not to exceed 10 miles, by a person engaged in the

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harvesting of forestry products. Such vehicles must be operated

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during daylight hours only, in accordance with all safety

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requirements prescribed by s. 316.2295(5) and (6).

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     (c) The width and height limitations of this section do not

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apply to farming or agricultural equipment, whether self-

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propelled, pulled, or hauled, when temporarily operated during

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daylight hours upon a public road that is not a limited access

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facility as defined in s. 334.03(13), and the width and height

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limitations may be exceeded by such equipment without a permit.

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To be eligible for this exemption, the equipment shall be

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operated within a radius of 50 miles of the real property of the

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equipment owner. However, farming or agricultural equipment

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greater than 174 inches in width is required to have one warning

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lamp mounted on each side of the equipment to denote the width

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and a slow-moving vehicle sign. Warning lamps required by this

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paragraph are required to be visible from the front and rear of

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the vehicle and must be visible from a distance of at least 1,000

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feet.

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     (d) The operator of equipment operated under this

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subsection is responsible for verifying that the route used has

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adequate clearance for the equipment.

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     Section 2.  Subsection (4) of section 316.535, Florida

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Statutes, is amended to read:

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     316.535  Maximum weights.--

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     (4)  With respect to the Interstate Highway System, in all

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cases in which it exceeds state law in effect on January 4, 1975,

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the overall gross weight on a group of two or more consecutive

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axles of a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including all

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enforcement tolerances, shall be as determined by the following

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formula:

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W = 500((LN / (N-1)) + 12N + 36)

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where W = the overall gross weight on any group of two or more

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consecutive axles to the nearest 500 pounds; L = the distance in

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feet between the extremes of any group of two or more consecutive

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axles; and N = the number of axles in the group under

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consideration. Such overall gross weight of any vehicle or

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combination of vehicles may not exceed 80,000 pounds, including

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all enforcement tolerances, except that, for a vehicle or

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combination of vehicles moving agricultural or forestry products

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from the point of harvest to the first point of marketing or

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processing when no part of such movement is upon any highway

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designated as a part of the National System of Interstate and

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Defense Highways, the vehicle or combination of vehicles may not

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exceed an overall gross weight of 84,000 pounds, including all

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enforcement tolerances.

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     Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.