Senate Transportation reviews draft 4.1 of miscellaneous DMV bill; key fee and rulemaking items left unresolved

Damien Leonard, legislative counsel, told the Senate Transportation Committee on the miscellaneous DMV bill draft 4.1 that staff had closed many sections but continued to await data and policy decisions on several items, including fee amounts and rulemaking language.

The committee was shown the latest update, draft 4.1, and told that several figures remain pending because DMV data were not yet available. "The what you've got in front of you is the latest update draft 4.1 of the miscellaneous DMV bill," Damien Leonard said. "What we'll be doing this morning, there aren't really any significant changes at this point, but we'll be highlighting what's outstanding." (Damien Leonard, Office of Legislative Counsel)

Why it matters: the bill packages multiple DMV changes that affect low-income and other vulnerable groups (reduced fees for SSI/SSDI recipients, foster-care fee treatment), statewide vehicle-inspection and equipment standards (tinted windows, inspection items) and technical rulemaking tied to a copyrighted ANSI standard. Committee members said they need the outstanding data and legal clarity before taking votes.

Outstanding data and next steps

Leonard said specific numeric values for several fee changes remain to be supplied by DMV and noted the Office of Legislative Council had not received them by the previous business day. He pointed members to section 5 (page 9 in the draft) and section 8 (reduced fees for individuals receiving SSI and SSDI) as among the items still awaiting numeric confirmation. Staff and the committee agreed to follow up with DMV and to circulate any documentation over the committee recess.

Rulemaking, ANSI and federal references

The draft contains a rulemaking section that would apply if the committee adopted DMV's proposed deletions and replacements. That section references a federal regulation and an underlying ANSI/SAE engineering standard that, Leonard said, is copyrighted and not reproduced verbatim in the bill. "The changes in here are really just to reflect that if you went with their proposal, you would have to include this section and make the changes," he said.

Committee members discussed obtaining a copy of the ANSI material for review. Leonard noted the code can cost about $40 and offered to seek authorization to buy a copy using legislative funds if the committee wants staff to review it in detail before next week.

Number plates, tinted windows and inspection items

Members debated proposed changes to number-plate requirements (including whether one plate could be required only on the rear) and to inspection standards for tinted windows and other items. One committee member warned she would vote no on the bill if the one-plate proposal remained in it, saying she did not think the DMV bill was the appropriate vehicle for broader cost-saving measures that shift costs to providers or the public. "If this remains in the DMV bill, I would be voting no," Senator Harrison said.

Leonard and committee members agreed that if questions remained when the committee reconvened, staff should recommend taking the contested items out of the DMV bill and addressing them in the upcoming transportation or budget vehicle (the "T bill") so budgetary impacts can be handled there.

Other items flagged for follow-up

- Foster-care related fee relief: committee asked staff to confirm counts and to consult a DCF contact provided by a constituent group so the committee would have written feedback before final decisions. Leonard said he had already identified a DCF staff contact through Vermonters Voice for Children and planned to ask that person for written testimony if helpful.

- Classic car titles/registration: staff to review constituent exchanges and determine whether a statutory change is needed.

- Trans-related extended driver's-license renewal: committee members noted language had been drafted outside the yellow-highlighted change list and asked that it be included in the next draft for review; Leonard said the language would be added.

- Revenue neutrality and budget impact: members discussed the need to make the overall package revenue neutral or to identify offsets; Leonard said some proposals aim to encourage electronic transactions but that the committee needs to recognize any administrative costs.

Process and schedule

Leonard said he will work over the committee recess to gather the outstanding DMV data, circulate materials to members and be prepared to return with revisions. He suggested that if the committee could not reach agreement, staff would place unresolved elements into the T bill for budgetary reconciliation.

Ending

Committee members directed staff to collect the outstanding figures from DMV, to provide copies of any relevant federal or ANSI material as available, and to circulate updated language before the next meeting. If significant unresolved items remain, the chair said the committee would consider removing contested sections from the DMV bill and addressing them within the T bill process.