SF 1794

2nd Engrossment - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to motor vehicles; requiring insurance
companies to report information; creating vehicle
insurance verification program and special revenue
account; requiring preparation of database to identify
uninsured motorists; requiring commissioner of public
safety to discontinue insurance verification sampling
program; declaring charges for violations of sampling
program laws to be void; reinstating certain drivers'
licenses; authorizing rulemaking; requiring report;
imposing criminal penalty; appropriating money;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections 168.013, by
adding a subdivision; 169.09, subdivision 13; 169.795;
169.796, subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law
in Minnesota Statutes, chapters 65B; 169; repealing
Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 169.796, subdivision
3.

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

Section 1.

new text begin [65B.90] MANDATORY DISCLOSURE.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Information reporting requirement. new text end

new text begin On at
least a monthly basis, each insurance company that issues
policies of reparation security in this state and each
administrator of a self-insurance plan registered with the
commissioner of public safety must provide to the agent
designated by the commissioner of public safety under section
169.7991 a record of each reparation security policy in force,
with the exception of policies that insure vehicles rated on a
commercial or fleet basis. The record must include the name,
date of birth, and driver's license number of each named insured
individual; make, year, and identification number of each
insured vehicle; and policy number, effective date, and
expiration date of each policy.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Nonliability. new text end

new text begin Neither an insurance company nor
an administrator of a self-insurance plan is liable to any
person for complying with this section.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 168.013, is
amended by adding a subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 8a. new text end

new text begin Vehicle insurance verification account;
surcharge. new text end

new text begin The commissioner shall impose a surcharge of 50
cents on registration taxes authorized under this section for
registration taxes collected January 1, 2006, or later. For
registration taxes collected on and after January 1, 2007, the
surcharge is reduced to 25 cents. The commissioner shall
forward the proceeds of the surcharge to the commissioner of
finance on a monthly basis. Upon receipt, the commissioner of
finance shall credit the surcharge proceeds to a special revenue
account, to be known as the vehicle insurance verification
account. Money in the account is appropriated to the
commissioner of public safety to be used to administer the
vehicle insurance verification program, including to contract
with an agent to carry out this program.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 169.09,
subdivision 13, is amended to read:

Subd. 13.

Reports confidential; evidence, fee, penalty,
appropriation.

(a) All written reports and supplemental reports
required under this section shall be for the use of the
commissioner of public safety and other appropriate state,
federal, county, and municipal governmental agencies for
accident analysis purposes, except:

(1) the commissioner of public safety or any law
enforcement agency shall, upon written request of any person
involved in an accident or upon written request of the
representative of the person's estate, surviving spouse, or one
or more surviving next of kin, or a trustee appointed pursuant
to section 573.02, disclose to the requester, the requester's
legal counsel, or a representative of the requester's insurer
the report required under subdivision 8;

(2) the commissioner of public safety shall, upon written
request, provide the driver filing a report under subdivision 7
with a copy of the report filed by the driver;

(3) the commissioner of public safety may verify with
insurance companies vehicle insurance information to enforce
sections 65B.48, 169.792, 169.793, 169.796, deleted text begin and deleted text end 169.797 new text begin , and
169.7991 new text end ;

(4) the commissioner of public safety shall provide the
commissioner of transportation the information obtained for each
traffic accident involving a commercial motor vehicle, for
purposes of administering commercial vehicle safety regulations;
and

(5) the commissioner of public safety may give to the
United States Department of Transportation commercial vehicle
accident information in connection with federal grant programs
relating to safety.

(b) Accident reports and data contained in the reports
shall not be discoverable under any provision of law or rule of
court. No report shall be used as evidence in any trial, civil
or criminal, arising out of an accident, except that the
commissioner of public safety shall furnish upon the demand of
any person who has, or claims to have, made a report, or, upon
demand of any court, a certificate showing that a specified
accident report has or has not been made to the commissioner
solely to prove compliance or failure to comply with the
requirements that the report be made to the commissioner.

(c) Nothing in this subdivision prevents any person who has
made a report pursuant to this section from providing
information to any persons involved in an accident or their
representatives or from testifying in any trial, civil or
criminal, arising out of an accident, as to facts within the
person's knowledge. It is intended by this subdivision to
render privileged the reports required, but it is not intended
to prohibit proof of the facts to which the reports relate.

(d) Disclosing any information contained in any accident
report, except as provided in this subdivision, section 13.82,
subdivision 3 or 6, or other statutes, is a misdemeanor.

(e) The commissioner of public safety may charge authorized
persons a $5 fee for a copy of an accident report. The
commissioner may also furnish copies of the modified accident
records database to private agencies as provided in paragraph
(g), for not less than the cost of preparing the copies on a
bulk basis.

(f) The commissioner and law enforcement agencies may
charge commercial users who request access to response or
incident data relating to accidents a fee not to exceed 50 cents
per report. "Commercial user" is a user who in one location
requests access to data in more than five accident reports per
month, unless the user establishes that access is not for a
commercial purpose. Money collected by the commissioner under
this paragraph is appropriated to the commissioner.

(g) The commissioner may provide a modified copy of the
accident records database that does not contain names, driver's
license numbers, vehicle license plate numbers, addresses, or
other identifying data to the public upon request. However,
unless the accident records data base includes the motor vehicle
identification number, the commissioner shall include the
vehicle license plate number if a private agency certifies and
agrees that the agency:

(1) is in the business of collecting accident and damage
information on vehicles;

(2) will use the vehicle license plate number only for the
purpose of identifying vehicles that have been involved in
accidents or damaged in order to provide this information to
persons seeking access to a vehicle's history and not for the
purpose of identifying individuals or for any other purpose; and

(3) will be subject to the penalties and remedies under
sections 13.08 and 13.09.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 169.795, is
amended to read:

169.795 VEHICLE INSURANCE RULES.

The commissioner of public safety shall adopt rules
necessary to implement sections 168.041, subdivision 4; 169.09,
subdivision 14; and 169.791 to deleted text begin 169.796 deleted text end new text begin 169.7992 new text end .

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 169.796,
subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Release of information.

An insurance
company shall release information to the Department of Public
Safety new text begin , its agent designated under section 169.7991, new text end or the law
enforcement authorities necessary to the verification of
insurance coverage. An insurance company or its agent acting on
its behalf, or an authorized person who releases the above
information, whether oral or written, acting in good faith, is
immune from any liability, civil or criminal, arising in
connection with the release of the information.

Sec. 6.

new text begin [169.7967] INFORMATION MAY BE REQUIRED.
new text end

new text begin A vehicle owner shall provide any information the
commissioner reasonably requires to determine that a motor
vehicle or motorcycle is covered by a plan of reparation
security. This information includes the name and address of the
owner, the name of the reparation obligor, the insurance policy
number, and any other data the commissioner requires.
new text end

Sec. 7.

new text begin [169.7991] VEHICLE INSURANCE VERIFICATION
PROGRAM.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Administration of program; contract. new text end

new text begin The
commissioner of public safety shall contract with an agent to
create and administer a vehicle insurance verification program.
The program will involve the establishment of a vehicle
insurance and registration database to verify compliance with a
motor vehicle owner's or operator's security requirements under
section 65B.48.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Agent duties. new text end

new text begin The agent shall:
new text end

new text begin (1) create, maintain, and update monthly a database of
vehicle insurance policies in force in this state from
information provided by insurance companies, administrators of
self-insurance plans under section 65B.90, and the commissioner
of public safety with regard to self-insurers;
new text end

new text begin (2) create, maintain, and update monthly a database of
vehicles registered in this state from information supplied by
the commissioner of public safety;
new text end

new text begin (3) compare, on a monthly basis, the vehicle registration
database with the vehicle insurance database to identify
vehicles registered in this state with owners who are not in
compliance with security requirements under section 65B.48;
new text end

new text begin (4) transmit, on a monthly basis, to the commissioner a
record of all vehicles registered in this state, but not insured
in this state; and
new text end

new text begin (5) issue notices as described in subdivisions 4 and 5.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Commissioner duties. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of public
safety shall provide the agent, at least monthly, with the
following information:
new text end

new text begin (1) on each vehicle registered within the state: vehicle
make, model, and identification number; owner's name, date of
birth, address, and driver's license number; and date of next
required registration renewal; and
new text end

new text begin (2) on each individual self-insurer registered with the
department under section 65B.48, subdivision 3: name and date
of birth; driver's license number; and make, year, and
identification number of each insured vehicle.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Noncompliance notice. new text end

new text begin When a comparison under
subdivision 2 identifies a vehicle registered within this state
without a plan of reparation security required under section
65B.48 for two consecutive months, the agent shall mail notice
of noncompliance to the vehicle owner stating that the owner
must provide to the agent within 45 days proof of reparation
security required by section 65B.48 or proof of exemption from
the compulsory reparation security requirement. The notice must
state that operation of a vehicle without required insurance may
subject the owner to criminal penalties, driver's license
revocation, vehicle registration revocation, and reinstatement
fees. The envelope in which the notice is mailed must clearly
state on the front that the contents of the envelope are
time-sensitive and a response is required. The envelope must
display information necessary to enable the postal service to
return undeliverable mail to the sender. The commissioner may
not block forwarding of the mailed notice.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Additional notice. new text end

new text begin If, at least 45 days after
the date of a notice to a vehicle owner issued under subdivision
4, the agent has not received proof of required reparation
security or exemption from the requirement, the agent shall
issue an additional notice of noncompliance to the vehicle
owner. The notice must contain a statement of the applicable
penalties, including criminal penalties, driver's license
revocation, vehicle registration revocation, and reinstatement
fees for operating a vehicle without required insurance. The
agent shall notify the commissioner of the issuance of an
additional notice of noncompliance. The commissioner shall
record the issuance of the notice and date of issuance on the
vehicle record.
new text end

Sec. 8.

new text begin [169.7992] INSURANCE INFORMATION DISCLOSURE;
PENALTY.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Restriction on disclosure. new text end

new text begin The
information in the database established in section 169.7991 may
not be disclosed under chapter 13 or otherwise, except as
follows:
new text end

new text begin (a) For investigating, litigating, or enforcing the
compulsory reparation security requirement under section 65B.48,
the agent shall verify insurance coverage for a state or local
government agency.
new text end

new text begin (b) For investigating, litigating, or enforcing the
compulsory reparation security requirement under section 65B.48,
the agent, upon request of a state or local government agency,
shall issue to the requesting agency a certification of
insurance status, as contained in the database, of a specific
individual or vehicle for a time period designated by the
government agency.
new text end

new text begin (c) Upon request, the department shall disclose whether or
not a person is insured to:
new text end

new text begin (1) that person;
new text end

new text begin (2) the parent or legal guardian of that person, if the
person is an unemancipated minor;
new text end

new text begin (3) the legal guardian of that person, if the person is
legally incapacitated;
new text end

new text begin (4) a person who has power of attorney from the insured
person;
new text end

new text begin (5) a person who submits a notarized release from the
insured person dated no more than 90 days before the date the
request is made; or
new text end

new text begin (6) a person suffering loss or injury in a motor vehicle
accident in which the insured person is involved, but only as
part of an accident report as authorized in section 169.09.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Criminal penalty. new text end

new text begin A person who knowingly
releases or discloses information from the database for a
purpose other than those authorized in this section, or to a
person who is not entitled to it, is guilty of a gross
misdemeanor.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Insurer nonliability. new text end

new text begin An insurer is not liable
to any person for complying with this section by providing
information to the agent.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin State and department nonliability. new text end

new text begin Neither the
state nor the department's agent is liable to any person for
gathering, managing, or using the information in the database as
provided in this section and section 169.7991, or for the
consequences of any act carried out under the authority of
section 169.796, subdivision 3.
new text end

Sec. 9. new text begin REINSTATEMENT OF SUSPENDED LICENSES.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner of public safety, without requiring proof
of insurance or payment of a reinstatement fee, shall reinstate
the driver's license of every vehicle owner whose license is
suspended under Minnesota Statutes, section 169.796, subdivision
3.
new text end

Sec. 10. new text begin DISMISSAL OF CHARGES.
new text end

new text begin All charges, complaints, and citations issued for a
violation of Minnesota Statutes, section 169.796, subdivision 3,
or a related violation, including driving after a license
suspension imposed for failure to comply with the provisions of
Minnesota Statutes, section 169.796, subdivision 3, are void and
must be dismissed.
new text end

Sec. 11. new text begin REMOVAL OF PREVIOUS VIOLATIONS.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner shall purge from a person's driving record
any notation of a violation of Minnesota Statutes, section
169.796, subdivision 3, and any notation of a related violation,
including driving after a license suspension imposed for failure
to comply with the provisions of Minnesota Statutes, section
169.796, subdivision 3. An insurer may not increase a premium
for a policy of vehicle insurance on the basis of a violation
described in this section by a named insured if the violation
occurred before the effective date of this section, and any such
increase previously imposed must be rescinded.
new text end

Sec. 12. new text begin REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner of public safety shall report to the
chairs of the house of representatives and senate committees
with jurisdiction over transportation policy by September 1,
2007, concerning the operation of the vehicle insurance
verification program, and the impact of the program on the
identification and number of uninsured motorists.
new text end

Sec. 13. new text begin REPEALER.
new text end

new text begin Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 169.796, subdivision 3, is
repealed.
new text end

Sec. 14. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end

new text begin Sections 9, 10, 11, and 13 are effective the day following
final enactment.
new text end