TRANSPORT OF LOGS/DIRT H.B. 4850 (S-2): FLOOR ANALYSIS
House Bill 4850 (Substitute S-2 as reported by the Committee of the Whole) Sponsor: Representative John Gernaat
House Committee: Transportation
Senate Committee: Agriculture and Forestry
The bill would amend the Michigan Vehicle Code to allow the transport of logs and poles that hang over the rear of a semitrailer under certain conditions; exempt a truck carrying sand, gravel, or dirt necessary for the normal operation of a farm from current requirements that loads be covered or securely fastened; remove language in the Code that exempts a vehicle carrying logs or tubular products from certain construction or loading requirements; allow the movement over a highway of a mobile home that was 16 feet wide, plus normal appurtenances that extended up to six inches, and eaves that extended up to one foot; and eliminate a current provision that requires a person towing a mobile home to operate the vehicle in a manner that places the eave portion of the mobile home over the shoulder of the highway.
Currently, the Code contains a number of provisions that specify maximum vehicle and trailer lengths, dependent upon the types of vehicles and trailers, combinations, and/or time of day. A person may operate a truck and semitrailer or trailer designed and used to transport saw logs, pulpwood, and tree length poles that does not exceed 70 feet in length, including the load. The bill provides that, in addition, a person could operate a truck tractor and semitrailer designed and used to transport such a load with the load overhanging the rear of the semitrailer by up to six feet, rather than the current three feet, if the semitrailer did not exceed 50 feet. (The total length hauled by a truck tractor, then, could not exceed 56 feet.)
Currently, if a vehicle is carrying a load that is not completely enclosed, the load must either: be covered with a firmly secured canvas or other cover; or, be securely fastened to the body or frame of the vehicle with binders sufficient to prevent dropping or shifting. A person operating a vehicle to transport agricultural commodities in the normal operation of a farm is exempt from the requirements. The bill specifies that a person operating a farm truck or implement of husbandry transporting sand, gravel, or dirt in the normal operation of a farm also would be exempt from the cover and/or secure requirements.
The bill would delete language that exempts a person operating a vehicle carrying logs or tubular products from a requirement that the vehicle be loaded in such a way to prevent the contents from escaping the vehicle.
MCL 257.719 & 257.720 Legislative Analyst: G. Towne
The bill would have no fiscal impact on State or local government.
Date Completed: 3-6-96 Fiscal Analyst: B. Bowerman
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This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.