HB 1656-FN-A-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED

 

 

2022 SESSION

22-2847

08/10

 

HOUSE BILL 1656-FN-A-LOCAL

 

AN ACT establishing a road usage registration fee and making an appropriation therefor.

 

SPONSORS: Rep. Somssich, Rock. 27; Rep. Meuse, Rock. 29; Rep. Pantelakos, Rock. 25; Rep. Ward, Rock. 28; Rep. Hamblet, Rock. 31

 

COMMITTEE: Public Works and Highways

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

 

ANALYSIS

 

This bill provides for an annual adjustment to motor vehicle registration fees to take into account gross vehicle weight and vehicle miles traveled, and directs the department of transportation to use part of the funds generated through vehicle registration for implementation of Type II noise abatement projects.

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

22-2847

08/10

 

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two

 

AN ACT establishing a road usage registration fee and making an appropriation therefor.

 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 

1  Motor Vehicles; Certificates of Title and Registration of Vehicles; Fees to be Collected.  Amend RSA 261:141, III(g) and (h) to read as follows:

(g)  For all motor vehicles other than those in RSA 261:141, I[:

0-3000 lbs. $31.20 ($2.60 per month)

3001-5000 lbs. $43.20 ($3.60 per month)

5001-8000 lbs. $55.20 ($4.60 per month)

8001-73,280 lbs. $.96 per hundred lbs. gross weight.], provided that such fees shall be adjusted annually pursuant to RSA 261:141-c:

(1)  For vehicles weighing between 0-3000 lbs., $30.72 ($2.56 per month).

(2)  For vehicles weighing between 3001-4000 lbs., $42.96 ($3.58 per month).

(3)  For vehicles weighing between 4001-5000 lbs., $55.32 ($4.61 per month).

(4)  For vehicles weighing 5001-6000 lbs., $67.56 ($5.63 per month).

(5)  For vehicles weighing 6001-8000 lbs., $86.04 ($7.17 per month).

(h)  Truck-tractors to be used in conjunction with a semi-trailer, gross weight shall include the weight of such tractors, the weight of the heaviest semi-trailer to be used therewith, and the weight of the maximum load to be carried thereby: between 8001-12,931 lbs. $0.99 per 100 pounds gross weight, between 12,932-73,280 lbs. $1.25 per 100 pounds gross weight, [up to 73,280 pounds $.96 per 100 pounds gross weight,] over 73,280 pounds-[$1.44] $1.50 shall be charged for each 100 pounds gross weight or portion thereof in excess of 73,280 pounds.

2  New Section; Adjustment of Registration Fees; Expenditure.  Amend RSA 261 by inserting after section 141-b the following new section:

261:141-c  Adjustment of Motor Vehicle Registration Fees; Expenditure.

I.  Beginning with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021, the motor vehicle registration fees described in RSA 261:141, III(g) shall be adjusted annually as follows:

(a)  The previous year's registration fees for motor vehicles and trucks, as defined in RSA 261:141, III(g) and (h), shall each be increased by 2.4 percent.

(b)  The new weight-based registration fee calculated pursuant to subparagraph (a) reflects an increase in the previous fee schedule as well as the increase in the number of automobile and truck weight categories based on the gross vehicle weight (GVW).  The total registration fee shall also include a vehicle miles traveled component, calculated using the vehicle miles traveled factor (VMTf), which shall depend on the actual miles drive by the vehicle since the last registration occurred.  To calculate the total registration fee, the value from the appropriate weight-based schedule calculated pursuant to subparagraph (a) shall be multiplied by a term which shall be equal to one plus a fraction, the numerator being the VMTf and the denominator being 4.  The VMTf shall be a fraction where the numerator is the difference between the vehicle miles traveled as indicated on the vehicle's odometer at the time of registration and the vehicle miles traveled at the time the vehicle was last registered and the denominator being 12,000 miles.  The odometer reading shall be recorded from the annual official vehicle inspection report that is reported to the department of safety.  In the first year of implementation the vehicle miles traveled for all registrations shall be assumed to be 12,000 miles without any proof required, resulting in a VMTf equal to one.

(c)  In the event a new car is being registered for the first time, the registration fee shall be calculated in the same manner as in subparagraph (b), except that a value of .0042 shall be substituted for the vehicle miles traveled factor (the equivalent of 50.4 miles).

(d)  In the second year of implementation, an accurate vehicle miles traveled value, as recorded by the department of safety in a commonly used database source, or as provided by the person registering the vehicle using 2 subsequent odometer readings from the official safety inspection certificate, shall be used to calculate actual miles traveled portion of the total registration fee.  In the event a person seeking to register his or her car does not provide accurate mileage information at the time of registration, a value of 2 shall be substituted for the VMTf (the equivalent of 24,000 miles).

II.  Beginning with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, municipal agents may collect $2 from each motor vehicle registration processed to offset administrative costs associated with such registrations.  The department of transportation shall use 5 percent of the total remaining fees collected pursuant to RSA 261:141, III(g) and (h) solely for implementation of Type II noise abatement projects on both the highway and turnpike systems.  The remainder of the fees collected shall be deposited into the highway fund.  When all pending Type II noise abatement projects have been completed, all fees collected pursuant to RSA 261:141, III(g) and (h) shall be deposited into the highway fund.

3  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.

 

LBA

22-2847

Redraft 12/27/21

 

HB 1656-FN-A-LOCAL- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

 

AN ACT establishing a road usage registration fee and making an appropriation therefor.

 

FISCAL IMPACT:      [ X ] State              [    ] County               [ X ] Local              [    ] None

 

 

 

Estimated Increase / (Decrease)

STATE:

FY 2022

FY 2023

FY 2024

FY 2025

   Appropriation

$0

$0

$0

$0

   Revenue

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

   Expenditures

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Funding Source:

  [    ] General            [    ] Education            [ X ] Highway           [ X ] Other - Turnpike Fund

 

 

 

 

 

LOCAL:

 

 

 

 

   Revenue

$0

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

   Expenditures

$0

$0

$0

$0

 

METHODOLOGY:

This bill provides for an annual adjustment to motor vehicle registration fees to take into account gross vehicle weight and vehicle miles traveled, and directs the department of transportation to use part of the funds generated through vehicle registration for implementation of Type II noise abatement projects.

 

The Department of Safety assumes motor vehicle inspections will need to be completed prior to registering a vehicle.  The amount of additional revenue cannot be determined as there is no mechanism in place to estimate the new fees to be collected or how much would be collected by the municipal agents.  The bill would change the weight categories that vehicles are categorized by in the database currently.  Based on the proposed legislation, $2 from each registration would be collected by the municipal agent and 5% of the remaining fees would be redirected from unrestricted Highway Funds to Type II noise abatement projects.   

 

The Department estimated the implementation costs would be as follows:

 

 

 

FY 2023

FY 2024

FY 2025

Programming and Testing of the MAAP and VISION systems for fee schedule changes (2,560 hours X $175/hour)

$448,000

$0

$0

Testing and Certification of Vendors (320 hours X $175/hour

$56,000

$56,000

$56,000

Programming and Testing  for annual adjustment of the registration fees (500 hours X $175/hour)

$0

$87,500

$87,500

Totals

$504,000

$143,500

$143,500

 

In addition, employees will need to be trained for the collection of mileage from each vehicle in order to calculate the correct fee.  This will be an added step in the registration process and will impact DMV operation’s and registration employees, as well as the clerks who process registration transactions in over 200 online Town Clerk offices.  

 

The Department of Transportation indicates this bill would result in an indeterminable increase in revenue to the Highway Fund and expenditures for Type II noise abatement projects.

 

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Departments of Safety and Transportation