SSB 3022 (LSB 5416DP (2) 88)

SENATE/HOUSE FILE _____

BY  (PROPOSED DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION BILL)

A BILL FOR

An Act providing for exemptions relating to odometer requirements, and including effective date provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 321.71, subsections 7, 9, and 11, Code 2020, are amended to read as follows:
   7.  A certificate of title shall not be issued for a motor vehicle less than ten model years old which is equipped with an odometer by the manufacturer, unless an odometer statement which is in compliance with federal law and regulations has been made by the transferor of the vehicle and is furnished with the application for certificate of title, or unless an exemption applies under 49 C.F.R. §580.17. The new certificate of title shall record on its face the odometer reading and the word “actual” if the true mileage is known. If the odometer reading is not the true mileage or the true mileage is unknown, the words “not actual” shall be recorded. If the odometer reading is greater than the odometer can mechanically count, the words “exceeds the mechanical limits” shall be recorded. However, a certificate of title may be issued for a motor vehicle to a person who moves into this state if the person acquired ownership of the motor vehicle prior to moving to this state. This subsection does not apply to motor vehicles having a gross vehicle weight rating of more than sixteen thousand pounds.
   9.  An Unless an exemption applies under 49 C.F.R. §580.17 or unless a certificate of title has been issued for the vehicle in the name of the dealer, an Iowa licensed motor vehicle dealer shall not have in possession as inventory for sale a used motor vehicle acquired by the dealer after the tenth model year prior to the current registration year, for which the dealer does not possess an odometer statement by the transferor which is in compliance with federal law and regulations unless a certificate of title has been issued for the vehicle in the name of the dealer. Transfer of a new motor vehicle with an ownership document which is a manufacturer’s statement of origin requires an odometer statement only when transferred at retail.
   11.  The department may adopt rules to administer this section, which rules shall be in compliance with the federal Truth in Mileage Act of 1986, Pub. L. No. 99-579, and 49 C.F.R. pt. 580.
    Sec. 2.  EFFECTIVE DATE.  This Act takes effect January 1, 2021.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   Under current law, a certificate of title must not be issued for a motor vehicle less than 10 model years old which is equipped with an odometer by the manufacturer, unless an odometer statement that is in compliance with federal law and regulations has been made by the transferor of the vehicle and is furnished with the application for certificate of title. This bill allows a certificate of title to be issued for a motor vehicle without an odometer statement if the vehicle falls within certain federally recognized exemptions. The bill also allows a licensed motor vehicle dealer to have in its possession as inventory for sale a used motor vehicle acquired by the dealer for which the dealer does not possess an odometer statement by the transferor if the federally recognized vehicle exemptions apply or if a certificate of title has been issued for the vehicle in the name of the dealer. 
   The federally recognized vehicle exemptions referenced by the bill include the following: a vehicle that has a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 16,000 pounds, a vehicle that is not self-propelled, a vehicle that was manufactured in a model year beginning at least 10 years before January 1 of the calendar year in which the vehicle is transferred, a vehicle sold directly by the manufacturer to any agency of the United States in conformity with contractual specifications, and a new vehicle prior to its first transfer for purposes other than resale.
   The bill requires that any rules adopted by the department to administer Code section 321.71 must be in compliance with 49 C.F.R. pt 580.
   The bill takes effect January 1, 2021.