Motor Vehicle Registration Reform & Fees

Current law sets fees for the titling and registration of vehicles and authorizes county clerks, as authorized agents of the department of revenue (department), to retain a portion of these fees to cover their costs. The bill raises the fees for the following by $4 and allows the county clerks to retain the additional $4:

• Issuing:
• Motor vehicle and other vehicle registrations requiring license plates;
• Temporary registration license plates;
• A validation tab, sticker, decal, or certificate for license plates; and
• A certificate of title;
• Filing, extending, or releasing a lien; and
• Obtaining a copy of a recorded title.

The department must increase these fees to account for inflation, but the department may not increase a fee more than 5% per year.

Current law authorizes a county clerk to set fees for shipping and handling of license plates. The bill authorizes the county clerk to set fees for the shipping and handling of motor vehicle documents. The county clerk is required to set and publish the fee by October 15 for registration periods beginning January 1 of the following year.

Current law allows people to register vehicles for less than one year so that each of their vehicles expire on the same month. The bill removes the multiple-vehicle requirement to allow people to register a vehicle for less than one year for any reason.

Current law requires a salvage vehicle's title to have a brand that says "rebuilt from salvage". The bill requires this brand to include a disclosure statement, which must:

• Include the reason the vehicle is salvage, as listed in statute;
• Contain a statement from the owner stating the nature of the damage that resulted in the determination that the vehicle is a salvage vehicle; and
• Contain the signature of the seller and buyer to sell the salvage vehicle.

Current law requires the seller of a salvage vehicle to provide a disclosure statement of the fact and have it signed. And if the buyer does not know about the vehicle being rebuilt from salvage, the buyer is entitled to a refund. The bill requires this disclosure statement and the buyer to be provided the refund only if the title of a salvage vehicle does not have the brand on the title or the vehicle is subject to multiple assignments.

Current law provides the option to have a rebuilder's certificate of title when a motor vehicle is a collector's item, the applicant is unable to provide appropriate evidence of ownership, and the applicant posts a bond. The bill authorizes the department to issue a rebuilder's certificate of title to people who can prove ownership. Under the current process, 2 bonds may be required. The bill changes the process to require only one bond.

(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)