HF 979 (LSB 2726HZ (2) 91)

HOUSE FILE 979

BY  COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

(SUCCESSOR TO HF 696)
(SUCCESSOR TO HSB 202)

(COMPANION TO SF 390 BY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to vehicles operating with a permit for excessive size or weight, and providing fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 321E.3, subsection 1, paragraph b, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
   b.  (1)  The department may issue all-systems permits under section 321E.8 which are valid for movement on all paved highways or streets primary roads and secondary roads, including roads designated by a local authority as a truck route, except the interstate road system if prohibited under section 321E.8, and except any highways or streets under the jurisdiction of local authorities upon which an all-systems permit is road designated by the applicable local authority as not valid as determined by the applicable local authority for use by permitted vehicles if the local authority indicates such highways and streets communicates the not-valid designation to the department in writing, including by means of electronic communication. However, all roads designated as not valid are subject to review by the department, and a local authority shall not determine that any paved farm-to-market road, or highway or street road designated as a truck route, is not valid for purposes of an all-systems permit without justification. A highway or street under the jurisdiction of a local authority upon which movement under an all-systems permit is valid shall connect with a highway or street under the jurisdiction of the state, or with another highway or street upon which movement under an all-systems permit is valid that ultimately connects with a highway or street under the jurisdiction of the state.
   (2)  A local authority that indicates determines a highway or street, including a paved farm-to-market road, secondary road, or road designated as a truck route upon which an all-systems permit is not valid under subparagraph (1) shall provide a written justification report to the department explaining the local authority’s determination in accordance with subparagraph (1). If the department disagrees with the local authority’s determination, the dispute shall be resolved in accordance with chapter 17A rules adopted by the department.
   (3)  Notwithstanding a local authority’s determination under this paragraph, a person who is issued an all-systems permit may operate a permitted vehicle over the most direct route between the location where the vehicle is loaded or is to be unloaded and the nearest highway or street upon which movement under an all-systems permit is valid.  If all roads leading to and from a loading or unloading location used by a permitted vehicle are designated as not valid, a local authority shall cooperate with the department to find an alternate route for the permitted vehicle over the shortest practicable distance.
   (4)  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A to implement and administer this paragraph.
    Sec. 2.  Section 321E.8, subsection 2, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  Vehicles with indivisible or divisible loads having an overall width not to exceed the width authorized under section 321.454, an overall length not to exceed the length authorized under section 321.457, an overall height not to exceed the height authorized under section 321.456, and a total gross weight not to exceed the gross weight authorized under section 321.463 by more than twelve and one-half percent, may operate under an all-systems permit and shall obtain route approval from the department. Permitted vehicles under this subsection with a gross weight exceeding eighty thousand pounds shall not be allowed to travel on any portion of the interstate road system.
    Sec. 3.  Section 321E.9, subsection 4, paragraph d, Code 2025, is amended by striking the paragraph.
    Sec. 4.  Section 321E.12, subsection 1, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  a.  A vehicle traveling under permit shall be registered for the gross weight of the vehicle and load. A trip permit issued according to section 326.23 shall not be used in lieu of the registration provided for in this section.
   b.  For purposes of this section, a vehicle traveling under a single-trip permit issued under section 321E.9 may be registered with the department for the combined gross weight of the vehicle and load on a single-trip basis. The fee for single-trip registration is four dollars per ton exceeding forty tons.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to vehicles operating with a permit for excessive size or weight (permit).
   Permits are generally issued by the authority responsible for the maintenance of the system of highways or streets on which the permitted vehicles are authorized to travel. One such permit is an all-systems permit that may be issued by the department of transportation (DOT) to authorize movement on most paved highways or streets, excluding the interstate road system and any highway or street under local authority where the permit is not valid, as determined by the local authority, if indicated to the DOT. Despite local authority determinations, permitted vehicles may still travel the shortest route between loading and unloading sites and valid highways. The bill makes an all-systems permit valid for movement on all primary and secondary roads, including roads designated by a local authority as a truck route, subject to the exceptions for the interstate road system and roads deemed not valid by a local authority. Under the bill, a road designated as not valid is subject to DOT review. If the DOT disagrees with the justification, the dispute must be resolved in accordance with DOT rules. The bill requires a local authority to cooperate with the DOT to find alternate routes if all roads leading to a loading and unloading location used by a permitted vehicle are designated as not valid.
   Current law authorizes the DOT to issue an all-systems permit valid for the movement of vehicles with a total gross weight not to exceed the gross weight authorized under Code section 321.463 (maximum gross weight), which varies based on the number of axles and distance between the axles, by more than 12 percent. The bill increases the allowable weight variance for such permitted vehicles to not more than 12.5 percent.
   Under current law, containers for international shipment must be considered an indivisible load when transported under a single-trip permit if the vehicle combination does not exceed maximum dimensions, the container is sealed for international shipment and is either being exported or arriving from a foreign country, specified documentation is carried in the vehicle, and the container holds only raw forest products. The bill strikes the requirement that the container hold only raw forest products. 
   Under current law, the DOT and local authorities are authorized to issue single-trip permits for the movement of vehicles that exceed established dimensions and weight limits (Code section 321E.9). A vehicle traveling under an oversize or overweight permit is required to be registered for the gross weight of the vehicle and load. The owner of a commercial vehicle, which is properly registered and licensed in some other jurisdiction and also operated occasionally in Iowa, who pays the $10 trip permit fee that otherwise authorizes a commercial vehicle not registered in Iowa to be operated in Iowa for up to 72 hours, in accordance with Code section 326.23, cannot use that trip permit in lieu of the oversize or overweight vehicle registration requirements. The bill authorizes a vehicle traveling under a single-trip permit to be registered with the DOT on a single-trip basis for the combined gross weight of the vehicle and load. The fee for single-trip registration is $4 per ton exceeding 40 tons. The bill strikes the prohibition on using a Code section 326.23 trip permit in lieu of registration.