HB 338 - Under this act, any person operating a commercial motor vehicle licensed for a gross weight of 54,000 pounds or more in excess of 75 miles per hour on a roadway posted 70 miles per hour is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and will be fined $100 for each mile per hour in excess of 75 miles per hour. Any person operating a commercial motor vehicle licensed for a gross weight of 54,000 pounds or more at a speed less than 70 miles per hour while in the left lane, with a posted or designated speed limit of 70 miles per hour is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

The act requires that a $250 fine, in addition to any other fine authorized to be imposed by law, be imposed on any person convicted of speeding in a posted construction zone while workers are present. The Department of Transportation will be required to erect signs around a construction or work zone which are clearly visible from the highway and which carry the following message: "Warning: $250 fine for speeding in this work zone".

The act also allows the Division of Transportation to provide by rule for the electronic filing of certificates of insurance by insurance companies. The motor carrier annual license renewal date is changed from the end of February to December 31st. Anyone failing to comply with the renewal provision will be guilty of a Class C misdemeanor. Charter buses are included under regulation.

Under the act, the time for bringing a suit is tolled by the filing or pendency of an administrative complaint. Credit cards may be accepted by the Division for the payment of charges or fees. Under the act, information relating to the safety of motor carriers may be released to the appropriate state and federal agencies, but shall remain closed to public inspection unless otherwise provided by law. The act also allows a commercial motor vehicle subject to federal motor carrier safety regulations with proof of an annual periodic inspection to be exempt from the state annual motor vehicle inspection.

This act has penalty provisions.
STEPHEN WITTE