SB 347

Existing law authorizes the Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority, the Department of Transportation, and private toll entities to collect a toll fee by using a system capable of charging an account holder the required toll fee by transmission of information from an electronic toll collection device on a motor vehicle. Existing law also authorizes the authority, department, and private toll entities to issue to the owner or operator of a vehicle a notice to pay toll when the vehicle passes through a toll collection point without payment of the required toll and no account is available to which a charge may be applied

This bill would further provide for the process of issuing notice to pay a toll and would authorize the non-renewal of the vehicle registration for vehicles whose owners fail to pay the required toll and administrative fees associated with the collection of the toll. The bill would also establish a procedure for the appeal of a vehicle registration hold

Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to enter into reciprocal agreements with other states and jurisdictions regarding the enforcement of toll enforcement

This bill would authorize the Department of Transportation and the Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority to enter into those reciprocal agreements and would also authorize the agreements to include vehicle registration non-renewal provisions

Relating to the Electronic Toll Collection Act; to amend Sections 23-2-167, 23-2-168, 23-2-169, 23-2-172, 23-2-173, and 23-2-175, Code of Alabama 1975, to provide further for the process and assessment of administrative fees for unpaid toll violations; to provide for the non-renewal of vehicle registration for failure to pay a toll violation or assessed administrative fees; and to further provide for reciprocal agreements with other states or jurisdictions.

Section 1

Sections 23-2-167, 23-2-168, 23-2-169, 23-2-172, 23-2-173, and 23-2-175, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:

§23-2-167.

As used in this article, the following words shall have the following meanings:

(1) AUTHORITY. The Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority, as defined in Section 23-2-142.

(2) DEPARTMENT. The Department of Transportation.

(3) ELECTRONIC TOLL COLLECTION. A method of collecting tolls or charges which is capable of charging an account holder the appropriate toll or charge, including, but not limited to, either of the following:

a. The transmission of information from an electronic device on a motor vehicle to the toll system, which information is used to charge the account the appropriate toll or charge.

b. The transmission of license plate information from a photo-monitoring system to the toll system, which information is used to charge the account the appropriate toll or charge.

(4) ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION. Any process of communication not directly involving the physical transfer of paper that is suitable for the retention, retrieval, and reproduction of information by the recipient.

(5) LESSOR. Any person, corporation, firm, partnership, agency, association, or organization renting or leasing vehicles to a lessee under a rental agreement, lease, or otherwise wherein providing the lessee has with the exclusive use of the vehicle for any period of time.

(6) LESSEE. Any person, corporation, firm, partnership, agency, association, or organization that rents, leases, or contracts for the use of one or more vehicles and has exclusive use of the vehicles for any period of time.

(7) OPERATOR. Any person who is or was driving a vehicle that is or was the subject of a toll violation, but who is not the owner of the vehicle.

(8) OWNER. Any person or entity who, at the time of a toll violation and with respect to the vehicle involved in the violation, is the registrant or coregistrant co-registrant of the vehicle with the Motor Vehicle Division, of the Department of Revenue, or with another state, territory, district, province, nation, or jurisdiction.

(9) PAYMENT. Paying a toll by cash, by permitting a charge against a valid account with the authority, department, or private toll entity, or by any other means of payment approved by the authority, department, or private toll entity.

(10) PHOTO-MONITORING SYSTEM. A vehicle sensor installed to work in conjunction with a toll collection facility which that automatically produces one or more photographs, one or more microphotographs, a videotape, or other recorded images of a vehicle at the time it passes through a toll collection point. Information obtained by a photo-monitoring system may be used to charge the account of an account holder or to identify violations of toll collection regulations.

(11) PRIVATE TOLL ENTITY. An individual, group of individuals, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, association, or any other legal entity licensed pursuant to Section 23-1-81 or Section 23-2-144(12), to operate toll collection facilities.

(12) TOLL. Charges prescribed by the authority, department, or private toll entity for the use of any toll road, bridge, causeway, or tunnel under the jurisdiction of the authority or department or under the ownership or operation of a private toll entity.

(13) TOLL VIOLATION. The passage of a vehicle through a toll collection point without payment of the required toll.

(14) VEHICLE or MOTOR VEHICLE. Any motor-propelled device in, upon, or by which any person or property is transported or drawn upon a road or highway, except devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks A motor vehicle, as defined in Section 32-7A-2.

§23-2-168.

(a) The authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, may collect a toll fee by utilizing a system of collection that is capable of charging an account holder the required toll fee by transmission of information from an electronic toll collection device on a motor vehicle. In addition, for any motor vehicle that does not use an electronic toll collection device, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, may utilize a photo-monitoring or other electronic system for toll fee collection.

(b) Any person or entity desiring to pay tolls electronically shall apply to the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, to become an account holder. The authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, in its discretion, may deny the application of a person or entity. The denial and reason therefor for the denial shall be sent to the applicant by first-class mail or electronic transmission.

(c) A person or entity whose application is accepted shall execute an account holder's agreement. The terms of the account holder's agreement shall be established by the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof.

(d) If a motor vehicle passes through a toll collection point and the toll fee is not paid through an electronic toll collection device or otherwise, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, shall first use the photo-monitoring or other electronic system for the toll road, bridge, causeway, or tunnel to determine if the registered owner of the motor vehicle has established an account for the payment of the toll. If an account has been established, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, shall charge the account holder the required toll fee. If an established account cannot be located, or if an established account cannot be charged the required toll, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, may attempt to collect the toll as a toll violation as provided in Section 23-2-169.

§23-2-169.

(a) The owner and operator of a vehicle driven on a toll road, bridge, causeway, or tunnel and through a toll collection point without payment of the required toll is jointly and severally liable to the authority, department, or private toll entity to pay the required toll, administrative fees, and civil penalty as provided in this article. The authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, may pursue collection of the required toll as provided for in this article.

(b) A certified written report or a facsimile an electronic copy thereof, sworn to or affirmed by the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, that a toll violation has occurred, based upon inspection of photographs, microphotographs, videotape, or other recorded images produced by a photo or other monitoring system, is prima facie evidence of the violation and is admissible as evidence in any proceeding charging a toll violation pursuant to this article.

(c) Upon receipt of a certified written or electronic statement from the department, authority, or private toll entity referencing the license plate registration number of a vehicle alleged to be involved in a toll violation, the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency shall provide the department, authority, or private toll entity with the name and address of the registered owner or operator of the subject vehicle. Alternatively, the department, authority, or private toll entity may enter into an agreement with any municipal law enforcement agency, or county sheriff, or other authorized entity to provide the registered owner information pursuant to this subsection.

(d) If a vehicle passes through a toll collection point without payment of the required toll and no account is available to which a charge may be applied, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, shall send by first-class mail or electronic transmission:

(1) A First Notice to Pay Toll Invoice Notice to the registered owner or operator of a vehicle which that is identified as having been involved in a toll violation. The first notice First Toll Invoice Notice shall require payment to the authority, department, or private toll entity of the required toll or tolls incurred over the previous billing period, as established by the authority, department, or private toll entity, and may require payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five dollars ($5) per First Toll Invoice Notice. plus an administrative fee of five dollars ($5) The payment shall be made within 30 days of the mailing or electronic transmission of the notice. This First Notice to Pay Toll The First Toll Invoice Notice shall be sent by the authority, department, or private toll entity, or its their agent or representative, within 60 days after receipt of the motor vehicle registration information from the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency, a municipal law enforcement agency, or the county sheriff, or other authorized entity.

(2) A Second Notice to Pay Toll Invoice Notice to the registered owner or operator of a vehicle who has failed to respond to a First Notice to Pay Toll Invoice Notice within the required time period. The second notice Second Toll Invoice Notice shall require payment to the authority, department, or private toll entity of the required toll or tolls, plus and may require payment of an administrative fee not to exceed fifty dollars ($50) per Second Toll Invoice Notice, as set by the authority, department, or private toll entity, within 30 days of the mailing or electronic transmission of the notice.

(3) A Failure to Pay a Toll citation Citation to the owner or operator of a vehicle who has failed to respond to the second notice Second Toll Invoice Notice within the required time period. The authority or department may issue a Failure to Pay a Toll Citation upon certification by the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, that a toll violation has occurred and the owner or operator has failed to respond to the First Toll Invoice Notice and the Second Toll Invoice Notice as required by this section. The authority or department shall send the citation to the owner or operator associated with the toll violation; provided, if the citation is based on certification by a private toll entity, the private toll entity or its agent or representative shall send the citation. The citation shall be sent by certified mail. The citation shall require payment to the authority, department, or private toll entity of the required toll, plus and may require payment of an administrative fee not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100), as set by the authority, department, or private toll entity, within 30 days of the mailing or electronic transmission of the notice of citation. The owner or operator shall be notified In addition, the notice shall provide that failure to pay the citation within the required time period may result in the following:

a. The non-renewal of the vehicle registration for the vehicle associated with the citation until the citation and associated fees are resolved.

b. The the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, filing a civil suit in the municipal court of the city in which the violation has occurred or district court of the county in which the violation occurred to collect the toll and all applicable fees and penalties allowed pursuant to this article.

(e) Administrative fees assessed under subsection (d) are not cumulative. The maximum aggregate administrative fee allowed increases from five dollars ($5) to fifty dollars ($50) to one hundred dollars ($100) with each notice issued. An additional administrative fee of up to five dollars ($5) shall may be assessed on each citation and paid to the law enforcement agency or authorized entity providing the registered owner information to the department, authority, or private toll entity.

(f) The notices and citation required by this subsection section shall also contain the following information:

(1) The name and address of the person or entity alleged to be liable for a failure to pay a toll pursuant to this section.

(2) The license plate registration number and state of issuance of the vehicle involved in the toll violation.

(3) The location where the toll violation occurred.

(4) The date and time of the toll violation.

(5) The identification of the photo or other monitoring system which recorded the violation or other document locator.

(6) Information advising of the manner and time in which liability may be contested.

(7) Notice that failure to contest liability in the manner and time provided in this section is an admission of liability.

(8) Notice that failure to pay a toll and any applicable fees may result in the suspension of driver's license and non-renewal of the vehicle registration for the vehicle associated with the citation.

(g) A manual, automatic, or electronic record of the mailing or transmission of the notices or citation prepared in the ordinary course of business is prima facie evidence of the mailing or transmission of the notices or citation.

§23-2-172.

(a)(1) If the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, has sent a Failure to Pay a Toll Citation in accordance with Section 23-2-169, and the owner fails to pay the citation within the required time period, the authority or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, may notify the department that the citation has not been paid and request the department to place a hold on the registration renewal of the vehicle associated with the violation. After notification and request, the department shall notify the local license plate issuing official on the first of each month that a registration renewal hold has been placed on the vehicle, and the local license plate issuing official shall refuse to renew the vehicle registration of the vehicle identified for failure to pay the toll. The vehicle owner shall not be permitted to renew the vehicle registration with the local license plate issuing official until all outstanding tolls and assessed administrative fees, including fees assessed by the authority, department, or private toll entity are resolved. However, the local license plate issuing official may issue a temporary license plate under Sections 32-6-213 and 32-6-214 to allow adequate time to allow the registration renewal hold to be removed. Any private toll entity receiving payment under this provision shall remit 10 percent of the total amount collected by enforcement of a registration renewal hold to the local license plate official. The registration hold is not subject to review or appeal except as provided in this article.

(2) At least 10 calendar days before the registration renewal hold is placed on the vehicle, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, shall give notice of the hold to the owner of the vehicle. The notice shall be by first-class mail. The notice shall inform the owner how to remove the hold and shall provide the owner notice of the appeal procedures.

(3)a. A person seeking removal of a vehicle registration renewal hold shall pay all outstanding tolls and assessed administrative fees to the authority, department, or private toll entity. If all outstanding tolls and assessed fees are paid in full or otherwise resolved, the toll authority or department shall notify the local license plate issuing official that the registration renewal hold has been removed and provide the local license plate issuing official with the ability verify that the non-renewal notice has been removed through an electronic portal. Upon request, the authority or department shall provide to the owner or operator of the vehicle verification of payment and removal of the registration renewal hold through an electronic portal.

b. The authority or department shall develop and maintain an electronic portal accessible by the owner for the access, verification, and payment of toll violations and fees. At the request of the local license plate issuing official, the department or authority shall communicate directly with the third-party vendor utilized by the local license plate issuing official for the processing of registration information. The authority is authorized to make rules relating to the creation and maintenance of the electronic portal. A private toll entity that requests the department to place a registration renewal hold on a vehicle shall comply with the rules adopted by the authority.

c. A person who receives notice of a vehicle registration renewal hold may file an appeal within 60 days of receipt of the notice. The appeal shall be filed in the local district court and is limited to the defenses against liability provided in Section 23-2-171.

d. The payment or nonpayment of all outstanding tolls and assessed administrative fees for removal of a vehicle registration renewal hold as set out in paragraph a. shall not waive, be a condition of, or affect a person's right to file an appeal in a court of appropriate jurisdiction to appeal the payment of the tolls and assessed administrative fees using the defenses provided in Section 23-2-171.

(4) When a nonresident is issued a Failure to Pay Toll Citation and the nonresident fails to pay the citation within the required time period, the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, may transmit a certified copy of the record of the failure to pay to the official in charge of the issuance of vehicle registration certificates in the state in which the nonresident resides, if the law of the other state provides for action similar to that provided for in this section.

(b)(1) If the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative, has pursued payment of the citation by civil suit pursuant to Section 23-2-170 and a municipal or district court determines that the person or entity charged with liability under this article is liable, the court shall enter a judgment against the person or entity and mail a copy of the judgment thereto to the person or entity. The court shall collect the unpaid tolls and administrative fee. The court may impose court costs and a civil penalty of up to one hundred dollars ($100) for each violation. Tolls, fees, and penalties shall be forwarded to the entity administering the tolls at the facility where the violation occurred.

(b)(2) Upon failure to satisfy a judgment for an action brought under Section 23-2-170 within 60 days of its entry and upon the written request of the authority, department, or private toll entity, or an their agent or representative thereof, it shall be the duty of the clerk of the court, or of the judge of a court which has no clerk in which the judgment is rendered within this state, to forward a certified copy of the judgment to the Secretary of the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency or his or her designee after the expiration of the 60 days.

(c)(3) The Secretary of the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency or his or her designee, upon the receipt of a certified copy of a judgment under subdivision (2), shall suspend the driver's license of any resident and the operating privilege, as defined in Section 32-7-2(6), of any nonresident, against whom judgment was rendered.

(d)(4) The resident's driver's license and the nonresident's operating privilege shall remain suspended until the judgment under subdivision (2) is satisfied and evidence of its satisfaction has been presented to the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency.

(e)(5) When a nonresident's operating privilege is suspended pursuant to this section, the Secretary of the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency or his or her designee shall transmit a certified copy of the record of such the action to the official in charge of the issuance of driver's licenses in the state in which such the nonresident resides, if the law of such other state provides for action in relation thereto similar to that provided for in this section.

(f)(6) Any person seeking reinstatement of a driving driver's license suspended pursuant to under this section shall also comply with the requirements provided in Section 32-6-17.

(c) A driver's license, operating privilege, or vehicle registration suspension that results from the failure to pay a toll or fee shall be deemed a suspension or revocation under Chapter 7 of Title 32 and is subject to any additional penalties provided under that chapter.

§23-2-173.

(a) The Department of Transportation is hereby empowered to department or authority may enter into agreements, when not in conflict with law, with other states or jurisdictions for reciprocal enforcement of toll violations.

(b) An agreement made under this section shall provide that drivers licensed and vehicles registered in the state, while operating on the highways of another jurisdiction, shall receive benefits, privileges, and exemptions of a similar kind with regard to toll enforcement as are extended to drivers and vehicles licensed or registered in the other jurisdiction while operated in the state.

(c) A reciprocal agreement under this section may provide for enforcement of toll violations by refusal or suspension of the license of the driver or registration of the vehicle in accordance with Section 23-2-172.

(d) The reciprocal violation enforcement agreement between the department or authority and the governmental entity of another state or jurisdiction shall agree upon fees and costs associated with collecting unpaid tolls and drivers driver's license and vehicle registration suspensions in their respective jurisdictions.

(e) Notwithstanding Section 23-2-174, electronic toll collection data may be used for vehicle registration verification by the Department of Revenue and other states that have entered into information exchange agreements with the Department of Revenue.

(f) The enforcement provisions of subsection (d) of Section 23-2-169 and Section 23-2-172 do not apply to toll violations that occur in another state or jurisdiction until and unless the department or authority enters into a reciprocal agreement under this section with the other state or jurisdiction.

(g) To the extent permitted by law or allowed by or agreed to in a reciprocal agreement made under this section, public or private toll entities within the state may share in the benefit of a reciprocal agreement. Nothing in this section prevents a public or private toll entity from entering into an agreement for data sharing, the reciprocal payment of toll violations, or the collection of tolls with another public or private toll entity.

§23-2-175.

The following vehicles are exempt from paying tolls imposed pursuant to this article:

(1) School buses transporting school children for a school event.

(2) Emergency and law enforcement vehicles Authorized emergency vehicles, as defined in Section 32-1-1.1, while actively engaged.

(3) Vehicles deemed exempt for a specific toll facility by the entity administering tolls. Any other vehicle as determined by the authority, department, or private toll entity, or their agent or representative."

Section 2

This act shall become effective January 1, 2024, following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.