SF 934

3rd Engrossment - 88th Legislature (2013 - 2014) Posted on 05/20/2013 09:59am

A bill for an act
relating to commerce; regulating motor vehicles; amending regulation of scrap
metal processing; requiring proof of ownership or hold period for vehicles
purchased for scrap; creating criminal penalties; amending Minnesota Statutes
2012, sections 168.27, subdivision 23; 168A.01, by adding a subdivision;
168A.153; 325E.21, subdivisions 1, 1a, 4, 8; proposing coding for new law
in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 168A.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 168.27, subdivision 23, is amended to read:

Subd. 23.

Registrar may file charges County or city attorney to prosecute.

The
registrar or the registrar's appointed inspectors may file charges with the county attorney
or city attorney may file charges against any licensee who violates any of the provisions of
this section or section 325E.21, including but not limited to, the grounds for suspension or
revocation set out in subdivision 12.

EFFECTIVE DATE.

This section is effective August 1, 2013.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 168A.01, is amended by adding a subdivision
to read:

Subd. 8c.

Aged vehicle.

"Aged vehicle" means a vehicle with a manufacturer's
designated model year equal to or greater than the seventeenth calendar year immediately
preceding the current calendar year, not including those vehicles registered as collector or
designated as a restored pioneer vehicle.

Sec. 3.

[168A.1525] AFFIDAVIT OF SALABILITY.

(a) Any person or unit of government upon whose property or in whose possession
is found any abandoned motor vehicle, or any owner of a motor vehicle whose title
certificate is faulty, lost, or destroyed and is thereby unable to transfer title to the motor
vehicle, may apply to a law enforcement agency in which the motor vehicle is located for
an affidavit of salability. The affidavit of salability gives authority for a vehicle to be sold
to or given to a dealer for recycling or dismantling in lieu of a certificate of title.

(b) The application for an affidavit of salability shall set out the name and address of
the applicant, and the year, make, model, and vehicle identification number of the motor
vehicle, if ascertainable, together with any other identifying features, and shall contain a
concise statement of the facts surrounding the abandonment, or a statement that the title of
the motor vehicle is lost or destroyed, or the reasons for the defect of title in the owner.
The applicant shall execute an affidavit stating that the facts alleged are true and that no
material fact has been withheld. A law enforcement agency must execute any request for
an affidavit of salability at the time of request.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 168A.153, is amended to read:

168A.153 REPORT OF VEHICLE RECEIPT.

Subdivision 1.

Older model vehicle.

A dealer who buys an older model vehicle to
be dismantled or destroyed shall report to the department within 30 15 days including the
vehicle's license plate number and identification number, and the seller's name and driver's
license number. A dealer who accepts an affidavit of salability in lieu of a certificate of
title as allowed by section 168A.1525 must report to the department the information
required by this subdivision by the close of business the day after the transaction.

Subd. 2.

Late-model or high-value vehicle.

A dealer who buys a late-model or
high-value vehicle to be dismantled or destroyed shall notify the secured party, if any, and
the commissioner within 15 days in the manner prescribed in subdivision 3. The dealer
must then properly destroy the certificate of title A dealer who accepts an affidavit of
salability in lieu of a certificate of title as allowed by section 168A.1525 must report to
the department the information required by this subdivision by the close of business the
day after the transaction.

Subd. 2a.

Aged vehicle.

(a) A dealer who buys an aged vehicle to be dismantled
or destroyed shall report to the department within 15 days including the vehicle's license
plate number and identification number and the seller's name.

(b) No certificate of title or other documentation is required for purchase of an
aged vehicle.

Subd. 3.

Notification on vehicle to be dismantled or destroyed; service fee.

Within the time frames prescribed in subdivisions 1 and 2 of acquiring a vehicle titled and
registered in Minnesota, a dealer shall notify the registrar that the dealership purchased
the vehicle to be dismantled or destroyed. The notification A dealer must maintain the
certificate of title, if any, on a vehicle for three years before destroying the title as prescribed
by the commissioner. Notifications under this section must be made electronically as
prescribed by the registrar. The dealer may contract this service to a deputy registrar and
the registrar may charge a fee not to exceed $7 per transaction to provide this service.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 325E.21, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Definitions.

(a) For purposes of this section, the terms defined in
this subdivision have the meanings given.

(b) "Law enforcement agency" or "agency" means a duly authorized municipal,
county, state, or federal law enforcement agency.

(c) "Person" means an individual, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability
company, corporation, or other entity.

(d) "Scrap metal" means:

(1) wire and cable commonly and customarily used by communication and electric
utilities; and

(2) copper, aluminum, or any other metal purchased primarily for its reuse or
recycling value as raw metal, including metal that is combined with other materials
at the time of purchase.

(e) "Scrap metal dealer" or "dealer" means a person engaged in the business of
buying or selling scrap metal, or both, but does not include a person engaged exclusively
in the business of buying or selling new or used motor vehicles or motor vehicle parts,
paper or wood products, rags or furniture, or secondhand machinery.

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 325E.21, subdivision 1a, is amended to read:

Subd. 1a.

Purchase or acquisition record required.

(a) Every scrap metal
dealer, including an agent, employee, or representative of the dealer, shall keep create a
permanent record, written in English, using ink or an electronic record program, at the
time of each purchase or acquisition of scrap metal. The record must include:

(1) an accurate and complete account or description, including the weight if
customarily purchased by weight, of the scrap metal purchased or acquired;

(2) if the scrap metal purchased or acquired is a motor vehicle, the vehicle
identification number and license plate number, if any;

(2) (3) the date, time, and place of the receipt of the scrap metal purchased or
acquired and a unique transaction identifier;

(3) (4) the name and address of the person selling or delivering the scrap metal;

(4) (5) the identification number and state of issue of the check or electronic transfer
used to purchase the scrap metal;

(5) (6) the identification number and state of issue of the seller's or deliverer's
driver's license, Minnesota identification card number, or other identification document
number of an identification document issued for identification purposes by any state,
federal, or foreign government if the document includes the person's photograph, full
name, birth date, and signature proof of identification; and

(6) (7) the license plate number and description of the vehicle used by the person
when delivering the scrap metal, and any identifying marks on the vehicle, such as a
business name, decals, or markings, if applicable; and

(8) a statement signed by the seller, under penalty of perjury, attesting that the scrap
metal or motor vehicle, to the best of the seller's knowledge, is not stolen and is free of any
liens or encumbrances and the seller has the right to sell it. This paragraph only applies if
the scrap metal or motor vehicle is acquired from an individual.

(b) The record, as well as the scrap metal purchased or received, shall at all
reasonable times be open to the inspection of any law enforcement agency.

(c) No record is required for property purchased from merchants, manufacturers or
wholesale dealers, having an established place of business, or of any goods purchased
at open sale from any bankrupt stock, but a bill of sale or other evidence of open or
legitimate purchase of the property shall be obtained and kept by the person, which must
be shown upon demand to any law enforcement agency.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a scrap metal dealer or the dealer's
agent, employee, or representative may not disclose personal information concerning a
customer without the customer's consent unless the disclosure is made in response to a
request from a law enforcement agency. A scrap metal dealer must implement reasonable
safeguards to protect the security of the personal information and prevent unauthorized
access to or disclosure of the information. For purposes of this paragraph, "personal
information" is any individually identifiable information gathered in connection with a
record under paragraph (a).

(e) Law enforcement agencies in the jurisdiction where a dealer is located may
conduct regular and routine inspections to ensure compliance, refer violations to county or
city attorney offices for criminal prosecution, and notify the registrar of motor vehicles.

Sec. 7.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 325E.21, subdivision 4, is amended to read:

Subd. 4.

Registration required.

(a) Every scrap metal dealer shall register with
and participate in the criminal alert network described in section 299A.61. The dealer
shall ensure that the dealer's system for receiving incoming notices from the network is
in proper working order and ready to receive incoming notices. The dealer shall check
the system for incoming notices twice each day the business is open, once upon opening
and then again before closing. The dealer shall inform all employees involved in the
purchasing or receiving of scrap metal of alerts received relating to scrap metal of the type
that might be conceivably sold to the dealer. In addition, the dealer shall post copies of the
alerts in a conspicuous location.

(b) The scrap metal dealer shall pay to the commissioner of public safety a $50
annual fee to participate in the criminal alert network and for the educational materials
described in section 299C.25.

(c) The commissioner shall notify the scrap metal dealer if a message sent to the
dealer is returned as undeliverable or is otherwise not accepted for delivery by the dealer's
system. The dealer shall take action necessary to ensure that future messages are received.

(d) Law enforcement agencies shall enter all appropriate information to the criminal
alert network described in section 299A.61, regarding any complaint they have received
pertaining to the theft of scrap metal or motor vehicles within 24 hours of receiving such
complaint.

Sec. 8.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 325E.21, subdivision 8, is amended to read:

Subd. 8.

Property held by law enforcement Investigative holds; confiscation of
vehicles.

(a) Whenever a law enforcement official from any agency has probable cause to
believe that property in the possession of a scrap metal dealer is stolen or is evidence of a
crime and notifies the dealer not to sell the item, the item may not be sold or removed the
scrap metal dealer shall not (1) process or sell the item, or (2) remove or allow its removal
from the premises. This investigative hold remains must be confirmed in writing by the
originating agency within 72 hours and will remain in effect for 90 30 days from the date
of initial notification, or until it the investigative hold is canceled or a seizure order is
issued, renewed, or until an order to confiscate is issued, whichever comes first.

(b) If an item is identified as stolen or evidence in a criminal case, the a law
enforcement official may:

(1) physically seize confiscate and remove it from the scrap metal dealer, pursuant to
a written order from the law enforcement official; or

(2) place the item on hold or extend the hold as provided in this section and leave it
in the shop under paragraph (a), and leave it on the license premises.

(c) When an item is seized confiscated, the person doing so shall provide
identification upon request of the scrap metal dealer, and shall provide the dealer the name
and telephone number of the seizing confiscating agency and investigator, and the case
number related to the seizure confiscation.

(d) A dealer may request seized confiscated property be returned in accordance
with section 626.04.

(e) When an order to hold or seize confiscate is no longer necessary, the law
enforcement official shall so notify the dealer.