Source: http://www.wvlegislature.gov/bill_status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=SB533%20SUB1.htm&yr=2008&sesstype=RS&i=533
Timestamp: 2018-04-21 10:21:37
Document Index: 362474881

Matched Legal Cases: ['§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17', '§17']

SB533 SUB1 Senate Bill 533 History
SB533 SUB1
[Originating in the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure; reported February 22, 2008.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §17A-6-1b, §17A-6-2a, §17A-6-4, §17A-6-7, §17A-6-15 and §17A-6-18a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §17A-6E-2 of said code, all relating to the licensing of dealers; extending authority to out-of-state dealers to issue vehicle registrations; expanding authority of Dealer Recovery Fund Control Board to consider claims against the fund; increasing minimum bond requirement from ten thousand dollars to twenty-five thousand dollars; establishing minimum number of sales prior to renewal and opportunity for appeal; exempting salespersons employed by dealers selling commercial vehicles, financial institutions and auctions from the requirement to obtain a salesperson license; and authorizing the commissioner to require participation in an electronic temporary plates or markers program as a precondition for issuance of temporary plates.
That §17A-6-1b, §17A-6-2a, §17A-6-4, §17A-6-7, §17A-6-15 and §17A-6-18a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that §17A-6E-2 of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision in this chapter, the division may allow a licensed motor vehicle dealer as defined in section one of this article authority to issue or transfer motor vehicle registrations for vehicles sold by the dealer. The authority to issue and transfer motor vehicle registrations shall be contingent upon the dealer collecting all fees and taxes required for the titling and registration of vehicles, receiving proof of insurance as described in subsection (e), section three, article three of this chapter and, if applicable, receiving the receipt showing full payment of personal property taxes in accordance with section three-a, article three of this chapter.
(a) There is hereby created a special fund in the State Treasury which is to be designated the Dealer Recovery Fund. The fund shall consist of certain moneys received from persons engaged in the business of selling new or used motor vehicles, new or used motorcycles, trailers, semi-trailers or recreational vehicles or from grants, gifts, bequests or awards arising out of the settlement or adjudication of a claim. The fund is not to be treated by the Auditor and Treasurer as part of the general revenue of the state. The fund is to be a special revolving fund paid out upon order of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles based on the recommendation of the Dealer Recovery Fund Control Board created in this section, solely for the purposes specified in this section. The commissioner may use up to one percent of funds from the Dealer Recovery Fund for the administrative expenses of operating the Dealer Recovery Fund Program.
(b) The Dealer Recovery Fund Control Board shall consist of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles or his or her designee, the Attorney General's designee representing the Office of Consumer Protection and one representative selected by the Motor Vehicle Dealer Advisory Board. The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles or his or her designee shall serve as chair and the board shall meet at least once a year during the month of July and as required by the commissioner. The commissioner may propose rules for promulgation in accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code that are necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section. The commissioner may employ the necessary staff needed to operate the program. The board may prorate the amount paid on claims when the amount of valid claims submitted would exceed thirty-three percent of the fund. However, claims presented by the Division of Motor Vehicles for taxes and fees shall be paid in full. The board may purchase insurance at a cost not to exceed one percent of the fund to cover extraordinary or excess claims from the fund.
(2) If the dealer recovery fund reaches or exceeds the amount of three million dollars as of the first day of July of any year, a dealer who meets the requirements of subdivision (1) of this subsection is exempt from payment of the annual dealer recovery fund fee. However, if the fund should, as of the first day of April of any year, drop below three million dollars, all dealers, regardless of any previous exemption shall pay the annual dealer recovery fee of one hundred fifty dollars. The exemption prescribed in subdivision (1) of this subsection remains in effect regardless of the status of the fund.
(5) Claims submitted by the Division of Motor Vehicles, a retail purchaser or a motor vehicle dealer contributing to the fund, not authorized by subdivisions (1) through (4), inclusive, of this subsection, but otherwise payable under the bond described in section four of this article, may be considered for payment by the board up to the amount of fifty thousand dollars for each licensing year the West Virginia dealer that is the subject of the complaint did not maintain the bond. The board may not consider claims submitted by or on behalf of a financial institution that lends money or credit to a dealer and holds the dealer inventory as collateral or payment of the loan or credit, commonly referred to as a floor planner.
(7) Whether the applicant, any partner, officer, director or employer of the business has previously applied for a license certificate under the provisions of this article or a similar license certificate in this or any other state and if so, whether the license certificate was issued or refused and, if issued, whether it was ever suspended or revoked;
(9) Any other information that the commissioner may reasonably require which may include information relating to any contracts, agreements or understandings between the applicant and other persons respecting the transaction of the business and any criminal record of the applicant if an individual, or of each partner if a copartnership, or of each officer and director, if a corporation.
(c) In the case of an application for a license certificate to engage in the business of new motor vehicle dealer, the application shall, in addition to the matters outlined in subsection (b) of this section, disclose:
(2) The exact number of new and used motor vehicles, if any, sold at retail and wholesale by the applicant or his or her predecessor, if any, during the preceding fiscal year and if no new and used motor vehicles were sold at retail and wholesale by the applicant or his or her predecessor, if any, during the preceding fiscal year, the number of new and used motor vehicles the applicant reasonably expects to sell at retail and wholesale during the ensuing fiscal year.
(d) In the case of an application for a license certificate to engage in the business of used motor vehicle dealer, the application shall in addition to the matters outlined in subsection (b) of this section disclose the exact number of used motor vehicles, if any, sold at retail and wholesale by the applicant or his or her predecessor, if any, during the preceding fiscal year, and if no used motor vehicles were sold at retail and wholesale by the applicant or his or her predecessor, if any, during the preceding fiscal year, the number of used motor vehicles the applicant reasonably expects to sell at retail and wholesale during the ensuing fiscal year.
(b) Application by a dealer to the commissioner for such temporary registration plates or markers shall be made on the form and in the manner prescribed and furnished by the commissioner for such purpose and shall be accompanied by a fee of three dollars for each such temporary registration plate or marker. The commissioner may require the fee to be remitted to the division in an electronic format. No refund or credit of fees paid by dealers to the commissioner for temporary registration plates or markers shall be allowed, except that in the event the commissioner discontinues the issuance of such temporary plates or markers, dealers returning temporary registration plates or markers to the commissioner may petition for and be entitled to a refund or a credit thereof. No temporary registration plates or markers shall be delivered by the commissioner to any dealer in house trailers only and no such temporary plates or markers shall be issued for or used on any house trailer for any purpose.
(c) Every dealer who has made application for and received temporary registration plates or markers shall maintain in permanent form a record of all temporary registration plates or markers delivered to him in a manner prescribed by the commissioner, a record of all temporary registration plates or markers issued by him or her and a record of any other information pertaining to the receipt or the issuance of temporary registration plates or markers which the commissioner may require. Each such record shall be kept for a period of at least three years from the date of the making thereof. Every dealer who issues a temporary registration plate or marker shall within five working days after he issues such plate or marker, send to the division a copy of the temporary registration plate or marker certificate properly executed by such dealer and the purchaser notify the division in the manner prescribed by the commissioner. No temporary registration plates or markers may be delivered to any dealer until such dealer has fully accounted to the commissioner for the temporary registration plates or markers last delivered to such dealer, by showing the number issued to purchasers by such dealer and any on hand.
(d) A dealer shall may not issue, assign, transfer or deliver a temporary registration plate or marker to anyone other than the bona fide purchaser of the vehicle to be registered; nor shall may a dealer issue a temporary registration plate or marker to anyone possessed of an annual registration plate for a vehicle which has been sold or exchanged, except a dealer may issue a temporary registration plate or marker to the bona fide purchaser of a vehicle to be registered who possesses an annual registration plate of a different class and makes application to the division to exchange such annual registration plate of a different class in accordance with the provisions of section one, article four of this chapter; nor shall may a dealer lend to anyone, or use on any vehicle which he or she may own, a temporary registration plate or marker. It shall be is unlawful for any dealer to issue any temporary registration plate or marker knowingly containing any misstatement of fact or knowingly to insert any false information upon the face thereof.
(e) Every dealer who issues temporary registration plates or markers shall affix or insert clearly and indelibly on the face of each temporary registration plate or marker in the manner prescribed by the commissioner, the date of issuance and expiration thereof and the make and motor or serial number of the vehicle for which issued.
(j) The commissioner shall require participation in an electronic temporary plate issuance system as a precondition for authority to issue temporary license plates or markers.
(a) There is continued a Motor Vehicle Dealers Advisory Board to assist and to advise the commissioner on the administration of laws regulating the motor vehicle industry; to work with the commissioner in developing new laws, rules or policies regarding the motor vehicle industry; to advise the commissioner on setting documentary charges or similar charges for documentary service in relation to securing a title; and to give the commissioner any further advice and assistance as he or she may from time to time require.
The board shall consist of nine members and the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles, or his or her representative, who shall be an ex officio member. Two members shall represent new motor vehicle dealers, with one of these two members representing dealers that sell less than one hundred new vehicles per year; one member shall represent used motor vehicle dealers; one member shall represent wrecker/dismantler/rebuilders; one member shall represent automobile auctions; one member shall represent recreational dealers; one member shall represent the West Virginia Attorney General's office; and two members shall represent consumers. All of the representatives, except the Attorney General representative who shall be designated by the Attorney General, shall be appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, with no more than five representatives being from the same political party.
(b) The commissioner shall consult with the board before he or she takes any disciplinary action against a dealer, an automobile auction or a license service to revoke or suspend a license, place the licensee on probation or levy a civil penalty unless the commissioner determines that the consultation would endanger a criminal investigation.
(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to amend various requirements for motor vehicle dealers. The bill expands the authority of the Dealer Recovery Fund Control Board to award claims; raises the minimum bond required of dealers during their first three years of operation from $10,000 to $25,000; establishes a minimum level of vehicle sales to remain a licensed dealer; adds required participation in electronic issuance of temporary license plates; and authorizes dealers in border states to issue registrations on vehicle sales and exempts persons employed by a dealer in the business of selling commercial motor vehicles from the requirements of obtaining a dealer salesperson license.