BILL NUMBER: AB 1908 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 9, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Bigelow
FEBRUARY 19, 2014
An act to amend Section 36101 of the Vehicle Code, relating to
vehicles.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1908, as amended, Bigelow. Vehicles: farm vehicles.
Existing law exempts certain farm vehicles from registration if
they have and display an identification plate, including a
motor vehicle used in an agricultural operation for purposes of
carrying, or returning empty from carrying, silage between one part
of a farm to another part of that farm or from one farm to another
farm, on a highway for a distance not to exceed 20 miles, as
specified. a truck tractor or truck tractor and
semitrailer combination, as specified, that is operated on highways
only incidental to a farming operation and exclusively in the
production or harvesting of melons, as specified. Existing law
prohibits these vehicles from being operated in excess of 25 miles
per hour on highways and authorizes the Commissioner of
the California Highway Patrol to prohibited the vehicles from
operating on specific routes, as specified.
This bill would additionally exempt from registration a
motor vehicle used in an agricultural operation for purposes of
carrying, or returning empty from carrying, onions between one part
of a farm to another part of that farm or from one farm to another
farm, on a highway for a distance not to exceed 20 miles, as
specified. provide a similar exemption for a truck
tractor or truck tractor and semitrailer combination, as specified,
that is operated on highways only incidental to a farming operation
and exclusively in the hauling of onions, as specified. The bill
would provide that the vehicle shall only be operated by a farmer, an
employee of the farmer, or a contracted employee of the
farmer between one part of a farm to another part of that farm, or
from one farm to another farm, on a highway for a distance not to
exceed 10 miles from the point of origin of the trip.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 36101 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
36101. The following farm vehicles are exempt from registration,
if they have and display an identification plate as specified in
Section 5014, and the vehicles shall not be deemed to be implements
of husbandry and they shall be subject to all equipment and device
requirements as if registered:
(a) A motor vehicle of a size so as to require a permit under
Section 35780 owned and operated by a farmer, designed and used
exclusively for carrying, or returning empty from carrying, feed and
seed products of farming, and used on a highway between one part of a
farm to another part of that farm or from one farm to another farm.
(b) A vehicle equipped with a water tank owned by a farmer and
used exclusively to service his or her own implements of husbandry.
(c) A water tank truck that is owned by a farmer, not operated for
compensation, and used extensively in the conduct of agricultural
operations, when used exclusively (1) for sprinkling water on dirt
roads providing access to agricultural fields or (2) transportation
of water for irrigation of crops or trees.
(d) (1) A cotton module mover, as defined in Section 36012.
(2) In order to maintain the exemption from registration granted
under this subdivision for a truck tractor, when combined with a
semitrailer, the owner of that truck tractor shall not operate it
during the exemption period in any manner other than as a cotton
module mover, as defined in Section 36012, and shall do all of the
following:
(A) Register the vehicle with the department before operating it
as a commercial motor vehicle.
(B) Apply to the department on a yearly basis for any renewal of
the exemption from registration.
(3) Exemption from registration under this subdivision does not
exempt a truck tractor, when combined with a semitrailer, operating
as a cotton module mover pursuant to Section 36012 and this
subdivision from the applicable safety requirements of this code or
any regulation adopted pursuant to any statute, including, but not
limited to, equipment standards, driver licensing requirements,
maximum driving and on-duty hours provisions, log book requirements,
drug and alcohol testing, maintenance of vehicles, and any driver or
vehicle standards specified in Division 14.8 (commencing with Section
34500).
(4) Truck tractors exempt from registration under this subdivision
are subject to the fees imposed under Sections 9250, 9250.8, and
9250.13, and to any other vehicle fees that are imposed by statute on
or after January 1, 1998, that are deposited in the Motor Vehicle
Account.
(e) A trailer that is equipped with a plenum chamber for the
drying of agricultural commodities.
(f) Except as provided in subdivision (j) of Section 36005, a trap
wagon, as defined in Section 36016, that is equipped with a fuel
tank or tanks. The fuel tank or tanks shall not exceed 3,000 gallons
total capacity.
(g) A forklift truck, operated by a farmer not for compensation.
For purposes of this section, a hay-squeeze shall be deemed a
forklift.
(h) (1) A truck tractor or truck tractor and
semitrailer combination specified in this subdivision that is owned
by a farmer and operated on the highways only incidental to a farming
operation and not for compensation. This subdivision applies only to
truck tractors with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating
over 10,000 pounds that are equipped with all-wheel drive and
off-highway traction tires on all wheels, and only to semitrailers
used in combination with that truck tractor and exclusively in the
production or harvesting of melons. The vehicles specified in this
subdivision shall not be operated in excess of 25 miles per hour on
the highways.
The
(2) The Commissioner of the
California Highway Patrol may, by regulation, prohibit the vehicles
specified in this subdivision from operating on specific routes.
These vehicles shall not be operated laden on the highway for more
than two miles from the point of origin and shall not be operated for
more than 30 miles unladen on the highway from the point of origin.
These vehicles shall not be operated for more than 15 miles unladen
on the highway from the point of origin, unless accompanied by an
escort vehicle to the front, and an escort vehicle to the rear.
(i) (1) A motor vehicle specifically
designed for, and used exclusively in, an agricultural operation for
purposes of carrying, or returning empty from carrying, silage or
onions that is operated by a farmer, an employee of the farmer, or a
contracted employee of the farmer between one part of a farm to
another part of that farm or from one farm to another farm, on a
highway for a distance not to exceed 20 miles from the point of
origin of the trip. This subdivision does not include a vehicle that
is used for the transportation of silage or onions for retail sales.
For
(2) For the purposes of this
subdivision, "silage" includes field corn, sorghum, grass, legumes,
cereals, or cereal mixes, either green or mature, converted into feed
for livestock.
(j) A truck tractor or truck tractor and semitrailer combination
specified in this subdivision that is owned by a farmer and operated
on the highways only incidental to a farming operation and not for
compensation. The vehicle shall only be operated by a farmer, an
employee of the farmer, or a contracted employee of the farmer
between one part of a farm to another part of that farm, or from one
farm to another farm, on a highway for a distance not to exceed 10
miles from the point of origin of the trip. This subdivision applies
only to truck tractors with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight
rating over 10,000 pounds that are equipped with off-highway traction
tires on all wheels, and only to semitrailers used in combination
with that truck tractor and exclusively in the hauling of onions. The
vehicles specified in this subdivision shall not be operated in
excess of 25 miles per hour on the highways. The Commissioner of the
California Highway Patrol may, by regulation, prohibit the vehicles
specified in this subdivision from operating on specific routes.