BILL NUMBER: AB 995 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 23, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 26, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Bigelow
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to amend Section 36101 of, and add Section 36013 to, the
Vehicle Code, relating to farm vehicles.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 995, as amended, Bigelow. Farm vehicles: registration
exemptions.
Existing law exempts specified farm vehicles from registration
with the Department of Motor Vehicles if the vehicles have, and
display, an identification plate, including a cotton module mover and
a vehicle equipped with a water tank that is owned by a farmer and
used exclusively to service his or her own implements of husbandry.
This bill would add onion hauling trucks to the list of farm
vehicles exempt from registration, if the vehicles have and display
an identification plate. The bill would define onion hauling trucks
for these purposes. The bill would also require that anyone operating
an onion hauling truck have in his or her possession a valid Class A
license. A violation of these provisions would be punishable as an
infraction.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 36013 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:
36013. An "Onion Hauling Truck" is a motor truck
semitrailer specialized motor truck that is
equipped with a loading conveyor belt and is designed and used
exclusively to transport field manufactured onions to an onion
processing facility or onion packing shed.
SEC. 2. Section 36101 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
36101. The following farm vehicles are exempt from registration,
if they have and display an identification plate as specified in
Section 5014. These vehicles also shall not be deemed to be
implements of husbandry, and they shall be subject to all equipment
and device requirements as if registered:
(a) A motor vehicle of a size so as to require a permit under
Section 35780, owned and operated by a farmer, designed and used
exclusively for carrying, or returning empty from carrying, feed and
seed products of farming, and used on a highway between one part of a
farm to another part of that farm or from one farm to another farm.
(b) A vehicle equipped with a water tank owned by a farmer and
used exclusively to service his or her own implements of husbandry.
(c) A water tank truck that is owned by a farmer, not operated for
compensation, and used extensively in the conduct of agricultural
operations, when used exclusively (1) for sprinkling water on dirt
roads providing access to agricultural fields or (2) transportation
of water for irrigation of crops or trees.
(d) (1) A cotton module mover, as defined in Section 36012.
(2) In order to maintain the exemption from registration granted
under this subdivision for a truck tractor, when combined with a
semitrailer, the owner of that truck tractor shall not operate it
during the exemption period in any manner other than as a cotton
module mover, as defined in Section 36012, and shall do all of the
following:
(A) Register the vehicle with the department before operating it
as a commercial motor vehicle.
(B) Apply to the department on a yearly basis for any renewal of
the exemption from registration.
(3) Exemption from registration under this subdivision does not
exempt a truck tractor, when combined with a semitrailer, operating
as a cotton module mover pursuant to Section 36012 and this
subdivision from the applicable safety requirements of this code or
any regulation adopted pursuant to any statute, including, but not
limited to, equipment standards, driver licensing requirements,
maximum driving and on-duty hours provisions, log book requirements,
drug and alcohol testing, maintenance of vehicles, and any driver or
vehicle standards specified in Division 14.8 (commencing with Section
34500).
(4) Truck tractors exempt from registration under this subdivision
are subject to the fees imposed under Sections 9250, 9250.8, and
9250.13, and to any other vehicle fees that are imposed by statute on
or after January 1, 1998, that are deposited in the Motor Vehicle
Account.
(e) A trailer that is equipped with a plenum chamber for the
drying of agricultural commodities.
(f) Except as provided in subdivision (j) of Section 36005, a trap
wagon, as defined in Section 36016, that is equipped with a fuel
tank or tanks. The fuel tank or tanks shall not exceed 3,000 gallons
total capacity.
(g) A forklift truck, operated by a farmer not for compensation.
For purposes of this section, a hay-squeeze shall be deemed a
forklift.
(h) (1) A truck tractor or truck tractor and semitrailer
combination specified in this subdivision that is owned by a farmer
and operated on the highways only incidental to a farming operation
and not for compensation. This subdivision applies only to truck
tractors with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating over
10,000 pounds that are equipped with all-wheel drive and off-highway
traction tires on all wheels, and only to semitrailers used in
combination with that truck tractor and exclusively in the production
or harvesting of melons. The vehicles specified in this subdivision
shall not be operated in excess of 25 miles per hour on the highways.
(2) The Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol may, by
regulation, prohibit the vehicles specified in this subdivision from
operating on specific routes. These vehicles shall not be operated
laden on the highway for more than two miles from the point of origin
and shall not be operated for more than 30 miles unladen on the
highway from the point of origin. These vehicles shall not be
operated for more than 15 miles unladen on the highway from the point
of origin, unless accompanied by an escort vehicle to the front, and
an escort vehicle to the rear.
(i) (1) A motor vehicle specifically designed for, and used
exclusively in, an agricultural operation for purposes of carrying,
or returning empty from carrying, silage that is operated by a
farmer, an employee of the farmer, or a contracted employee of the
farmer between one part of a farm to another part of that farm or
from one farm to another farm, on a highway for a distance not to
exceed 20 miles from the point of origin of the trip. This
subdivision does not include a vehicle that is used for the
transportation of silage for retail sales.
(2) For the purposes of this subdivision, "silage" includes field
corn, sorghum, grass, legumes, cereals, or cereal mixes, either green
or mature, converted into feed for livestock.
(j) (1) An onion hauling truck, as defined in Section 36013.
(2) In order to maintain the exemption from registration granted
under this subdivision for a motor truck, when combined with a
semitrailer, the owner of that onion hauling truck shall not operate
the vehicle during the exemption period in any manner other than as
an onion hauling truck, and shall do all of the following:
(A) Register the vehicle with the department before operating it
as a commercial motor vehicle.
(B) Apply to the department as required pursuant to Section 5014
for any renewal of the exemption from registration.
(3) Exemption from registration under this subdivision does not
exempt a motor truck semitrailer that is equipped with a loading
conveyer belt, operating as an onion hauling truck pursuant to
Section 36013 and this subdivision from the applicable
safety requirements of this code or any regulation adopted
pursuant to any statute, including, but not limited to, equipment
standards, driver licensing requirements, maximum driving and on-duty
hours provisions, log book requirements, drug and alcohol testing,
maintenance of vehicles, and any driver or vehicle standards
specified in Division 14.8 (commencing with Section 34500).
(4) A person shall not operate an onion hauling truck unless the
person has in his or her possession a valid Class A driver's license.
A violation of this paragraph shall be punishable as an infraction.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.