Florida Senate - 2015 CS for SB 220
By the Committee on Transportation; and Senator Simpson
596-02196-15 2015220c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Commercial Motor Vehicle Review
3 Board; amending s. 316.545, F.S.; deleting a provision
4 authorizing any officer of the Florida Highway Patrol
5 to require that a vehicle be driven to the nearest
6 weigh station or public scales under certain
7 circumstances; deleting a provision requiring the
8 officer to weigh the vehicle at fixed scales rather
9 than by portable scales upon a request by the vehicle
10 driver under certain circumstances; authorizing a
11 driver to request to proceed to the nearest fixed
12 scale at an official weigh station or a certified
13 public scale when he or she is issued a citation for
14 exceeding weight limits; requiring the officer issuing
15 the citation to escort the driver and attend the
16 reweighing; voiding the citation if the vehicle or
17 combination of vehicles is found to be in compliance
18 with certain weight requirements; revising the
19 membership of the board; providing for appointment of
20 additional members by the Governor and the
21 Commissioner of Agriculture; providing qualifications
22 for such members; providing for terms of the
23 additional members; providing for removal of members
24 by the Governor under certain circumstances; requiring
25 each member to take an oath subject to certain
26 requirements; providing for action by a quorum of the
27 board; requiring the Department of Transportation to
28 provide space and video conference capability at each
29 district office to enable a person requesting a
30 hearing to appear remotely before the board; requiring
31 that the additional appointments be made by a
32 specified date; providing effective dates.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. Subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection
37 (2) of section 316.545, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
38 316.545 Weight and load unlawful; special fuel and motor
39 fuel tax enforcement; inspection; penalty; review.—
40 (1) Any officer of the Florida Highway Patrol having reason
41 to believe that the weight of a vehicle and load is unlawful is
42 authorized to require the driver to stop and submit to a
43 weighing of the same by means of either portable or fixed scales
44 and may require that such vehicle be driven to the nearest weigh
45 station or public scales, provided such a facility is within 5
46 highway miles. Upon a request by the vehicle driver, the officer
47 shall weigh the vehicle at fixed scales rather than by portable
48 scales if such a facility is available within 5 highway miles.
49 Anyone who refuses to submit to such weighing obstructs an
50 officer pursuant to s. 843.02 and is guilty of a misdemeanor of
51 the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
52 775.083. Anyone who knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs,
53 or opposes a weight and safety officer while refusing to submit
54 to such weighing by resisting the officer with violence to the
55 officer’s person pursuant to s. 843.01 is guilty of a felony of
56 the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s.
57 775.083, or s. 775.084.
58 (2)(a) Whenever an officer of the Florida Highway Patrol or
59 weight inspector of the Department of Transportation, upon
60 weighing a vehicle or combination of vehicles with load,
61 determines that the axle weight or gross weight is unlawful, the
62 officer may require the driver to stop the vehicle in a suitable
63 place and remain standing until a determination can be made as
64 to the amount of weight thereon and, if overloaded, the amount
65 of penalty to be assessed as provided herein. However, any gross
66 weight over and beyond 6,000 pounds beyond the maximum herein
67 set shall be unloaded and all material so unloaded shall be
68 cared for by the owner or operator of the vehicle at the risk of
69 such owner or operator. Except as otherwise provided in this
70 chapter, to facilitate compliance with and enforcement of the
71 weight limits established in s. 316.535, weight tables published
72 pursuant to s. 316.535(7) shall include a 10-percent scale
73 tolerance and shall thereby reflect the maximum scaled weights
74 allowed any vehicle or combination of vehicles. As used in this
75 section, scale tolerance means the allowable deviation from
76 legal weights established in s. 316.535. Notwithstanding any
77 other provision of the weight law, if a vehicle or combination
78 of vehicles does not exceed the gross, external bridge, or
79 internal bridge weight limits imposed in s. 316.535 and the
80 driver of such vehicle or combination of vehicles can comply
81 with the requirements of this chapter by shifting or equalizing
82 the load on all wheels or axles and does so when requested by
83 the proper authority, the driver shall not be held to be
84 operating in violation of said weight limits. When a driver is
85 issued a citation for exceeding the weight limits established in
86 s. 316.535 as determined by means of portable scales, the driver
87 may request to proceed to the nearest fixed scale at an official
88 weigh station or at a certified public scale for verification of
89 weight. The officer who issued the citation must escort the
90 driver at all times and must attend the reweighing. If the
91 vehicle or combination of vehicles is found to be in compliance
92 with the weight requirements of this chapter at the fixed scale,
93 the citation is void.
94 Section 2. Effective October 1, 2015, subsection (7) of
95 section 316.545, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
96 316.545 Weight and load unlawful; special fuel and motor
97 fuel tax enforcement; inspection; penalty; review.—
98 (7) There is created within the Department of
99 Transportation the Commercial Motor Vehicle Review Board,
100 consisting of three permanent members who shall be the Secretary
101 of the Department of Transportation, the executive director of
102 the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the
103 Commissioner of Agriculture, or their authorized
104 representatives, and four additional members appointed pursuant
105 to paragraph (b), which may review any penalty imposed upon any
106 vehicle or person under the provisions of this chapter relating
107 to weights imposed on the highways by the axles and wheels of
108 motor vehicles, to special fuel and motor fuel tax compliance,
109 or to violations of safety regulations.
110 (a) The Secretary of the Department of Transportation or
111 his or her authorized representative shall be the chair of the
112 review board.
113 (b) The Governor shall appoint one member from the road
114 construction industry, one member from the trucking industry,
115 and one member with a general business or legal background. The
116 Commissioner of Agriculture shall appoint one member from the
117 agriculture industry. Each member appointed under this paragraph
118 must be a registered voter and citizen of the state and must
119 possess business experience in the private sector. Members
120 appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall each serve a 2-year
121 term. A vacancy occurring during the term of a member appointed
122 under this paragraph shall be filled only for the remainder of
123 the unexpired term. Members of the board appointed under this
124 paragraph may be removed from office by the Governor for
125 misconduct, malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in office
126 Each permanent member of the review board may designate one
127 additional person to be a member of the review board.
128 (c) Each member, before entering upon his or her official
129 duties, shall take and subscribe to an oath before an official
130 authorized by law to administer oaths that he or she will
131 honestly, faithfully, and impartially perform the duties
132 devolving upon him or her in office as a member of the review
133 board and that he or she will not neglect the duties imposed
134 upon him or her by s. 316.3025, s. 316.516, s. 316.550, or this
135 section The review board may execute its responsibilities by
136 meeting as a single group or as subgroups consisting of one
137 authorized representative of each permanent member.
138 (d) The chair of the review board is responsible for the
139 administrative functions of the review board.
140 (e) Four members of the board shall constitute a quorum,
141 and the vote of four members shall be necessary for any action
142 taken by the board. A vacancy on the board shall not impair the
143 right of a quorum of the board to exercise all of the rights and
144 perform all of the duties of the board.
145 (f)(e) The review board may hold sessions and conduct
146 proceedings at any place within the state. As an alternative to
147 physical appearance, and in addition to any other method of
148 appearance authorized by rule, the Department of Transportation
149 shall provide space and video conference capability at each
150 district office to enable a person requesting a hearing to
151 appear remotely before the board, regardless of the physical
152 location of the board proceeding.
153 Section 3. The appointment of additional members to the
154 Commercial Motor Vehicle Review Board in accordance with the
155 changes made by this act to s. 316.545, Florida Statutes, shall
156 be made by September 1, 2015, for terms beginning October 1,
157 2015.
158 Section 4. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
159 act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2015.