House Bill 1280

(As Sent to Governor)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 63-21-39, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY IN PERFORMING INSPECTIONS OF MOTOR VEHICLES FOR WHICH SALVAGE CERTIFICATES OF TITLE HAVE BEEN ISSUED AND FOR WHICH A CLEAR CERTIFICATE OF TITLE OR A BRANDED CERTIFICATE OF TITLE IS APPLIED TO ACCEPT DOCUMENTS AND INFORMATION REQUIRED BY APPLICANTS FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF SUCH INSPECTIONS BY HAND DELIVERY OR MAIL OR TO AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT TO REQUIRE THAT SUCH MOTOR VEHICLES BE BROUGHT TO A HIGHWAY PATROL FACILITY FOR A VISUAL INSPECTION; TO PROVIDE THAT UPON THE ISSUANCE OF A CERTIFICATE OF INSPECTION FOR EACH MOTOR VEHICLE FOR WHICH A SALVAGE CERTIFICATE OF TITLE WAS PREVIOUSLY ISSUED THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY SHALL COLLECT A FEE; TO AMEND SECTION 63-21-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT; TO PRESCRIBE A FINE FOR ANY AUTOMOBILE DEALER OR SALESMAN WHO SELLS A RENOVATED VEHICLE AFTER IT HAS BEEN SUBMERGED WITHOUT NOTIFYING THE PURCHASER; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 63-21-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

63-21-39. (1) An owner who scraps, dismantles or destroys a vehicle and a person who purchases a vehicle as scrap or to be dismantled or destroyed shall indicate same on the back of the certificate of title and shall immediately cause the certificate of title and any other documents required by the State Tax Commission to be mailed or delivered to the State Tax Commission for cancellation. A certificate of title of the vehicle shall not again be issued except upon application containing the information the State Tax Commission requires, accompanied by a certificate of inspection in the form and content specified in Section 63-21-15(5) and proof of payment of a fee as provided in subsection (2) of this section * * *.

(2) For the purpose of requesting a clear title or a branded title on a vehicle with a salvage certificate of title, every owner of a vehicle that has been issued a salvage certificate of title in this state or any other state which has been restored in this state to its operating condition which existed prior to the event which caused the salvage certificate of title to issue shall make application to the State Tax Commission, accompanied by a certificate of inspection issued by the Department of Public Safety in the form and content specified in Section 63-21-15(5) and the payment of a fee of Seventy-five Dollars ($75.00) for each motor vehicle for which a certificate of inspection is issued. All such monies shall be collected by the Department of Public Safety and paid to the State Treasurer for deposit in a special fund that is hereby created in the State Treasury to be known as the "Salvage Certificate of Title Fund." Monies in the special fund may be expended by the Department of Public Safety, upon appropriation by the Legislature. The State Tax Commission shall establish by regulation the minimum requirements by which a vehicle which has been issued a salvage certificate of title may be issued a clear title.

(3) Before a clear title or a branded title may be issued for a vehicle for which a salvage certificate of title has been issued, the applicant shall submit, by hand delivery or mail, such documents and information to the Department of Public Safety as the department may require for the purpose of determining if the vehicle complies with the requirements of this section and all applicable regulations promulgated by the Commissioner of Public Safety and the State Tax Commission. The Department of Public Safety also may require that an applicant bring a vehicle for which application for a clear title or a branded title is being made to a Highway Patrol facility for a visual inspection whenever the department deems that a visual inspection is necessary or advisable. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit inspectors of the Mississippi Highway Patrol from conducting on-site inspections and investigations of motor vehicle rebuilders or motor vehicle repair businesses to determine if such businesses are in compliance with all applicable laws relating to the motor vehicle title laws of this state and regulations promulgated by the Commissioner of Public Safety and the State Tax Commission.

SECTION 2. Section 63-21-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

63-21-15. (1) The application for the certificate of title of a vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home in this state shall be made by the owner to a designated agent, on the form the State Tax Commission prescribes, and shall contain or be accompanied by the following, if applicable:

(a) The name, current residence and mailing address of the owner;

(b) (i) If a vehicle, a description of the vehicle, including the following data: year, make, model, vehicle identification number, type of body, the number of cylinders, odometer reading at the time of application, and whether new or used; and

(ii) If a manufactured home or mobile home, a description of the manufactured home or mobile home, including the following data: year, make, model number, serial number and whether new or used;

(c) The date of purchase by applicant, the name and address of the person from whom the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home was acquired, and the names and addresses of any lienholders in the order of their priority and the dates of their security agreements;

(d) In connection with the transfer of ownership of a manufactured home or mobile home sold by a sheriff's bill of sale, a copy of the sheriff's bill of sale;

(e) (i) An odometer disclosure statement made by the transferor of a motor vehicle. The statement shall read:

"Federal and state law requires that you state the mileage in connection with the transfer of ownership. Failure to complete or providing a false statement may result in fine and/or imprisonment.

I state that the odometer now reads __________ (no tenths) miles and to the best of my knowledge that it reflects the actual mileage of the vehicle described herein, unless one (1) of the following statements is checked:

_____ (1) I hereby certify that to the best of my knowledge the odometer reading reflects the amount of mileage in excess of its mechanical limits.

_____ (2) I hereby certify that the odometer reading is not the actual mileage. WARNING-ODOMETER DISCREPANCY!"

(ii) In connection with the transfer of ownership of a motor vehicle, each transferor shall disclose the mileage to the transferee in writing on the title or on the document being used to reassign the title, which form shall be prescribed and furnished by the State Tax Commission. This written disclosure must be signed by the transferor and transferee, including the printed name of both parties.

Notwithstanding the requirements above, the following exemptions as to odometer disclosure shall be in effect:

1. A vehicle having a gross vehicle weight rating of more than sixteen thousand (16,000) pounds.

2. A vehicle that is not self-propelled.

3. A vehicle that is ten (10) years old or older.

4. A vehicle sold directly by the manufacturer to any agency of the United States in conformity with contractual specifications.

5. A transferor of a new vehicle prior to its first transfer for purposes other than resale need not disclose the vehicle's odometer mileage.

(iii) Any person who knowingly gives a false statement concerning the odometer reading on an odometer disclosure statement shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of up to One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or imprisonment of up to one (1) year, or both, at the discretion of the court. These penalties shall be cumulative, supplemental and in addition to the penalties provided by any other law; and

(f) For previously used manufactured homes and mobile homes that previously have not been titled in this state or any other state, a disclosure statement shall be made by the owner of the manufactured home or mobile home applying for the certificate of title. That statement shall read:

"I state that the previously used manufactured home or mobile home owned by me for which I am applying for a certificate of title, to the best of my knowledge:

_____ (1) Has never been declared a total loss due to flood damage, fire damage, wind damage or other damage; or

_____ (2) Has previously been declared a total loss due to:

_____ (a) Collision;

_____ (b) Flood;

_____ (c) Fire;

_____ (d) Wind;

_____ (e) Other (please describe): _______________

________________________________________________________________."

(2) The application shall be accompanied by such evidence as the State Tax Commission reasonably requires to identify the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home and to enable the State Tax Commission to determine whether the owner is entitled to a certificate of title and the existence or nonexistence of security interests in the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home and whether the applicant is liable for a use tax as provided by Sections 27-67-1 through 27-67-33.

(3) If the application is for a vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home purchased from a dealer, it shall contain the name and address of any lienholder holding a security interest created or reserved at the time of the sale and the date of his security agreement and it shall be signed by the dealer as well as the owner. The designated agent shall promptly mail or deliver the application to the State Tax Commission.

(4) If the application is for a new vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home, it shall contain the certified manufacturer's statement of origin showing proper assignments to the applicant and a copy of each security interest document.

(5) Each application shall contain or be accompanied by the certificate of a designated agent that the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home has been physically inspected by him and that the vehicle identification number and descriptive data shown on the application, pursuant to the requirements of subsection (1)(b) of this section, are correct, and also that he has identified the person signing the application and witnessed the signature. If the application is to receive a clear title or a branded title for a vehicle for which a salvage certificate of title has been issued, the application shall be accompanied by a sworn affidavit that the vehicle complies with the requirements of this section, Section 63-21-39 and the regulations promulgated by the State Tax Commission under Section 63-21-39.

(6) If the application is for a first certificate of title on a vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home other than a new vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home, then the application shall conform with the requirements of this section except that in lieu of the manufacturer's statement of origin, the application shall be accompanied by a copy of the bill of sale of said motor vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home whereby the applicant claims title or in lieu thereof, in the case of a motor vehicle, certified copies of the last two (2) years' tag and tax receipts or in lieu thereof, in any case, such other information the State Tax Commission may reasonably require to identify the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home and to enable the State Tax Commission to determine ownership of the vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home and the existence or nonexistence of security interest in it. If the application is for a vehicle, manufactured home or mobile home last previously registered in another state or country, the application shall also be accompanied by the certificate of title issued by the other state or country, if any, properly assigned.

(7) Every designated agent within this state shall, no later than the next business day after they are received by him, forward to the State Tax Commission by mail, postage prepaid, the originals of all applications received by him, together with such evidence of title as may have been delivered to him by the applicants.

(8) An application for certificate of title and information to be placed on an application for certificate of title may be transferred electronically as provided in Section 63-21-16.

(9) The State Tax Commission shall issue a certificate of title or any other document applied for under this chapter to the designated agent, owner or lienholder of the motor vehicle or of the manufactured home or mobile home, as appropriate, not more than thirty (30) days after the application and required fee prescribed under Section 63-21-63 or Section 63-21-64 are received unless the applicant requests expedited processing under subsection (10) of this section.

(10) (a) The State Tax Commission shall establish an expedited processing procedure for the receipt of applications and the issuance of certificates of title and any other documents issued under this chapter, except a replacement certificate of title as provided under Section 63-21-27(2), for motor vehicles and for manufactured homes or mobile homes. Any designated agent, lienholder or owner requesting the issuance of any such document, at his or her option, shall receive such expedited processing upon payment of a fee in the amount of Thirty Dollars ($30.00). Such fee shall be in addition to the fees applicable to the issuance of any such documents under Section 63-21-63 and Section 63-21-64.

(b) When expedited title processing is requested, the applicable fees are paid and all documents and information necessary for the Tax Commission to issue the certificate of title or other documents applied for are received by the commission, then the commission shall complete processing of the application and issue the title or document applied for within seventy-two (72) hours of the time of receipt, excluding weekends and holidays.

SECTION 3. Any automobile dealer or salesman who sells a renovated vehicle after it has been submerged without notifying the purchaser in writing, when the dealer or salesman knew or should have known of the submersion, shall be subject to a fine not to exceed the sales price of the vehicle.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2006.