Legislature(2005 - 2006)CAPITOL 120
03/31/2006 01:00 PM House JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HJR32 | |
| HB415 | |
| HB413 | |
| HB347 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 413 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 347 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 415 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| = | HJR 32 | ||
HB 347 - MOTOR VEHICLE INSURANCE & NOTICE 3:09:14 PM REPRESENTATIVE ANDERSON announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 347, "An Act relating to mandatory motor vehicle insurance, license suspensions, and notices relating to motor vehicles and driver's licenses." [Before the committee was CSHB 347(STA).] REPRESENTATIVE GARA, speaking as one of the prime sponsors of HB 347, relayed that HB 347 attempts to correct an unintended result in which people are charged with not having insurance when, in fact, they do have insurance. 3:10:55 PM DUANE BANNOCK, Director, Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Department of Administration (DOA), began by relayed that the DMV supports HB 347. He highlighted that the division is involved with the legislation due to Section 3. As the law reads today, the DMV is directed to notify the customer when there are issues pertaining to mandatory insurance and the potential suspension that follows if there is no insurance. The division, he explained, is required to notify the customer at the address provided to DMV. However, since people obtain their drivers' license once every five years, they often don't notify the DMV of address changes. MR. BANNOCK explained that furthermore, the police report which is causing the action to be generated has the individual's current address, but by law the DMV has to send the notification to [the address on file with the DMV]. This legislation allows the DMV to provide better [service]. In response to Representative Anderson, Mr. Bannock specified that the law requires an individual to inform the DMV of his/her new address, but doesn't require that the individual obtain a new drivers' license. Therefore, it's possible that a drivers' license would specify one address while the DMV's records would specify the correct address. REPRESENTATIVE GARA asked if Mr. Bannock is aware of individuals being charged with the crime of not having insurance when they really did. MR. BANNOCK replied yes. 3:13:35 PM TOM McGRATH opined that in Alaska, about 50 percent of drivers don't have [automobile] insurance, and in Anchorage, when a police officer stops a motorist, the officer may or may not ask for proof of insurance. However, the individual who is hit by an uninsured motorist uses his/her insurance to pay for the repair of his/her vehicle, which drives up his/her costs. The fine proposed in Section 1 is not to exceed $300 for an infraction, he noted, much less than the cost of insurance. MR. McGRATH characterized the aforementioned as providing an incentive for people not to have insurance. Therefore, he suggested that CSHB 347(STA) be modified such that a reference to AS 28.22.041, AS 28.22.019, and AS 28.22.091 be added to Section 4. With the aforementioned change, if an individual is caught without a drivers' license, insurance, or proper registration, the vehicle is removed from the street until the individual rectifies the situation. He further suggested that the fine under Section 1 should be changed to a mandatory $1,000 fine. Under AS 28.01.015, he recommended that the "may" be changed to "shall" so that the municipality must impound the vehicle when the individual doesn't have a drivers' license, proper registration, or insurance. REPRESENTATIVE GARA explained that the fine proposed in Section 1 only pertains to whether the individual informed the DMV of an address change, not whether the individual has insurance. MR. McGRATH suggested that there is probably some place in Title 28 where a larger fine can be implemented for those individuals driving without insurance. 3:19:47 PM REPRESENTATIVE GARA said that Mr. McGrath's comments and concerns warrant further consideration. Representative Gara emphasized that he shares Mr. McGrath's concerns with regard to those driving without insurance, and thus the original intent was to try to develop a way to enforce the mandatory insurance law. However, he couldn't find a way to do that without requiring the department to invest in new computer systems and additional staff, which would necessitate a large fiscal note. [CSHB 347(STA) was held over.]
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