2013 Connecticut Legislation thread

With Connecticut HB 5405 still fresh in our collective memory, I thought it would be a good idea to start this thread. Note that the sponsor of last year's HB 5405, Rep. Jeffrey J. Berger, is now the Deputy Speaker of the House.

The current list of this year's house bills does not have anything like 5405 in it yet, but the legislative season is still young.

There is already another bill that deserves our attention. It proposes annual safety inspections of motor vehicles. Seems to be more about revenue than vehicle safety.

The bill has been referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation.

This is the entire text of the bill as it presently stands:

Code:

General Assembly
	  	
Proposed Bill No. 5187
	 
January Session, 2013
	  	
LCO No. 246
  	 
Referred to Committee on TRANSPORTATION
	 
Introduced by:
	 
REP. HOVEY, 112th Dist.
	 

AN ACT REQUIRING ANNUAL SAFETY INSPECTIONS FOR ALL MOTOR VEHICLES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

That title 14 of the general statutes, concerning motor vehicles, be amended to require annual safety inspections for all such vehicles, including inspection of mud flaps, lights, windshield wipers and windows.

Statement of Purpose:

To improve road safety in Connecticut by requiring all motor vehicles to undergo annual safety inspections.

You can look through the whole House list of bills here: http://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/menu/ClerkDocList.ASP?house=H&doc_type=lob

I have not seen anything in the Senate list of bills that is of concern to our hobby. The Senate list is here: http://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/menu/ClerkDocList.ASP?house=S&doc_type=lob

 

Yes. BTW, there were many firearms-related bill introduced, especially in the first few days. I think the "single round" thing is a little extreme... makes a double barrel shotgun illegal, an over and under rifle, etc.

Back to the transportation theme, here's one that impacts older collector cars:

Proposed H.B. No. 6021 REP. VICINO, 35th DIST. 'AN ACT CONCERNING INSPECTIONS FOR MOTOR VEHICLES WITH OVER ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND MILES', to require inspections for certain vehicles to ensure safety on our roads.
REF. TRANSPORTATION

The last couple of days have seen a lot of House bills introduced ... have to look and see what's up in the Senate.

 

I just looked up the status of the bill. They had a public hearing on 20 Feb. Several members of the public voiced their opposition to the bill at that time.

Rep. Tom Vicino (who introduced the bill) also wrote a letter asking the transportation committee to support the bill.

He noted that he would like to see seat belts, horn, lights and wipers tested at the same time as the regularly scheduled emissions testing. This actually seems pretty reasonable, but I still question if it will lead to increased vehicle safety. I think phones are a much bigger problem. I guess it's a good idea if your goal is to develop a revenue stream. Always ask the question: Who stands to benefit?

At least there's no sign of last year's HB5405 being resurrected. This is good to see.

Letters presented to the transportation committee here: http://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/menu/CommDocTmyBillAllComm.asp?bill=HB-06021&doc_year=2013]

I think you can rest easy about having to put mud flaps on the Countach, regardless of the outcome.

 

Also, regarding Rep. Hovey's bill to require annual safety inspections... they had a public hearing on that one, and the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles, Melody Currey spoke against it, saying it would be costly for both taxpayers and the DMV, and that she doesn't believe it will improve safety on Connecticut roads.

BTW, it was Rep. Hovey who mentioned mud flaps in her bill.

Also, Rep. Vicino, who introduced the other bill, owns an auto body and repair shop in Westbrook. IMO, that sounds like a conflict of interest.

 

Lane mentioned to me that this was on the agenda again... Indeed, last year's HB 5405 has reappeared largely intact as HB 5102 this year:

AN ACT ESTABLISHING A STATE-WIDE MILL RATE FOR MOTOR VEHICLES AND AMENDING THE DEFINITION OF ANTIQUE, RARE OR SPECIAL INTEREST MOTOR VEHICLE.

Public Hearing Testimony here (most opposed):

http://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/menu/CommDocTmyBillAllComm.asp?bill=HB-05102&doc_year=2013

Last action: 4/25/2013 Referred by House to Committee on Finance, Revenue and Bonding

I'm amazed that I missed this. Like last year's bill, this bill seeks to establish a state-wide mill rate on motor vehicles. It also seeks to change the definition of "Antique, rare or special interest" motor vehicles so that only cars aged 30 years and older would qualify.

From a quick read, it appears that in this year's version of the bill, the municipalities would still be responsible for collecting motor vehicle taxes. Any surplus collected (relative to the old local mill rate) would then be remitted to the Department of Revenue Services for subsequent distribution. This would be done over a 5 year period to allow towns to "adjust" to the new mill rate.

Just from memory, I think this differs from last years bill in that the old bill would have the state collecting this revenue on behalf of the towns. Maybe a gesture to appease the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities? Well, they spoke out against this one as well at the public hearing.

Nothing improves efficiency like an extra layer of administration.

It's all about revenue, folks.

 

HB 5102 is now titled: "AN ACT PROVIDING AN EXEMPTION FROM PROPERTY TAX FOR MOTOR VEHICLES." The new substitute bill seeks to exempt the first $20,000 of a car's assessed value from local property taxes. It would take effect on July 1, 2019.

No mention of antique vehicles in the text of the bill, though the bill status page still mentions this. (It appears to simply not have been updated.)

So, good news for owners of antique vehicles... apparently.

n.b. Senate Bill 843 contains similar language.

 

I think Peter is spot-on with this advice. Connecticut itself does not require a title for cars more than 20 model years old, but I think you need to find out what the requirements are in the state where it will end up. You might also be able to apply for, and receive, a Connecticut title... I've heard of this being done.