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House adopts multiple amendments to motor-vehicle law; bill passed and messaged to Senate
Summary
The House considered Senate Bill 326 and adopted amendments clarifying that DMV rules cannot alter emissions inspection requirements, added public-notice safeguards for abandoned vehicle certificates, and accepted the bill in concurrence; a proposal to move noncommercial inspections to every other year was withdrawn.
The House took up Senate Bill 326, described by the clerk as "an act relating to miscellaneous amendments to laws relating to motor vehicles," and considered several amendments before passing the bill in concurrence.
Representative Burke (member from Brattleboro) offered an amendment adding a subsection clarifying that "nothing in this section shall be construed to permit the Department of Motor Vehicles to amend the rules relating to emissions inspections for motor vehicles," explaining the change preserves federal authority over air-quality requirements administered by the Environmental Protection Agency. The House adopted that amendment by voice vote after committee members urged support.
Representative Tomlinson (member from Winooski) then offered an amendment to strengthen the abandoned-vehicle process by adding a public-notice step: when an abandoned vehicle certificate application is filed, the DMV would post a list on its website and information about how an owner can prove ownership. Tomlinson said DMV testified it receives about "30 of these applications per week, which is about 1,500 a year," and that certified mail sometimes fails to reach owners. The committee reported support and the House adopted the amendment by voice vote.
Representative Noyes (member from Wilca) proposed a broader amendment to move noncommercial vehicle inspections to every other year, retain emission compliance requirements until the EPA approves a state implementation plan amendment, and direct the Department of Environmental Conservation and DMV to pursue related regulatory and fee reviews. After discussing fiscal and safety trade-offs, the sponsor asked to withdraw the amendment and leave was granted; there was no vote on that proposal.
After the amendment process, the clerk read the bill again for third reading. The presiding officer called the question, and the House passed S 3 26 in concurrence by voice vote. A member moved to suspend the rules so the House could message its action on S 3 26 to the Senate forthwith; the motion passed by voice vote and the action was sent to the Senate.
Taken together, the amendments preserved federal emissions oversight, added a public-notice safeguard for abandoned vehicles, and left a proposed change to inspection frequency to further work or future action.
