2006 Minnesota Statutes

174.30 OPERATING STANDARDS FOR SPECIAL TRANSPORTATION SERVICE.
    Subdivision 1. Applicability. (a) The operating standards for special transportation service
adopted under this section do not apply to special transportation provided by:
(1) a common carrier operating on fixed routes and schedules;
(2) a volunteer driver using a private automobile;
(3) a school bus as defined in section 169.01, subdivision 6; or
(4) an emergency ambulance regulated under chapter 144.
(b) The operating standards adopted under this section only apply to providers of special
transportation service who receive grants or other financial assistance from either the state
or the federal government, or both, to provide or assist in providing that service; except that
the operating standards adopted under this section do not apply to any nursing home licensed
under section 144A.02, to any board and care facility licensed under section 144.50, or to any
day training and habilitation services, day care, or group home facility licensed under sections
245A.01 to 245A.19 unless the facility or program provides transportation to nonresidents on
a regular basis and the facility receives reimbursement, other than per diem payments, for that
service under rules promulgated by the commissioner of human services.
(c) Notwithstanding paragraph (b), the operating standards adopted under this section do not
apply to any vendor of services licensed under chapter 245B that provides transportation services
to consumers or residents of other vendors licensed under chapter 245B and transports 15 or
fewer persons, including consumers or residents and the driver.
    Subd. 2. Rules. (a) The commissioner of transportation shall adopt by rule standards for
the operation of vehicles used to provide special transportation service which are reasonably
necessary to protect the health and safety of individuals using that service. The commissioner, as
far as practicable, consistent with the purpose of the standards, shall avoid adoption of standards
that unduly restrict any public or private entity or person from providing special transportation
service because of the administrative or other cost of compliance.
(b) Standards adopted under this section must include but are not limited to:
(1) qualifications of drivers and attendants, including driver training requirements that must
be met before a driver provides special transportation;
(2) safety of vehicles and necessary safety equipment;
(3) general requirements concerning inspection and maintenance of vehicles, replacement
vehicles, standard vehicle equipment, and specialized equipment necessary to ensure vehicle
usability and safety for disabled persons; and
(4) minimum insurance requirements.
(c) The commissioner shall consult with the Council on Disability before making a decision
on a variance from the standards.
    Subd. 2a. Vehicle and equipment safety; provider responsibilities. (a) Every special
transportation service provider shall systematically inspect, repair, and maintain, or cause to
be inspected, repaired, and maintained, the vehicles and equipment subject to the control of
the provider. Each vehicle and its equipment must be inspected daily. A vehicle may not be
operated in a condition that is likely to cause an accident or breakdown of the vehicle. Equipment,
including specialized equipment necessary to ensure vehicle usability and safety for disabled
persons, must be in proper and safe operating condition at all times.
(b) Each special transportation provider shall maintain the following records for each vehicle:
(1) an identification of the vehicle, including make, serial number, and year, and, if the
vehicle is not owned by the provider, the name and address of the person furnishing the vehicle;
(2) a schedule of inspection and maintenance operations to be performed;
(3) a record of inspections, repairs, and maintenance showing the date and nature;
(4) a lubrication record; and
(5) a record of tests conducted to ensure that emergency doors or windows and wheelchair
lifts function properly.
    Subd. 3. Other standards; wheelchair securement. (a) A special transportation service that
transports individuals occupying wheelchairs is subject to the provisions of sections 299A.11
to 299A.18 concerning wheelchair securement devices. The commissioners of transportation
and public safety shall cooperate in the enforcement of this section and sections 299A.11 to
299A.18 so that a single inspection is sufficient to ascertain compliance with sections 299A.11 to
299A.18 and with the standards adopted under this section. Representatives of the Department
of Transportation may inspect wheelchair securement devices in vehicles operated by special
transportation service providers to determine compliance with sections 299A.11 to 299A.18 and
to issue certificates under section 299A.14, subdivision 4.
(b) In place of a certificate issued under section 299A.14, the commissioner may issue
a decal under subdivision 4 for a vehicle equipped with a wheelchair securement device if the
device complies with sections 299A.11 to 299A.18 and the decal displays the information
in section 299A.14, subdivision 4.
    Subd. 4. Vehicle and equipment inspection; decal. (a) The commissioner shall inspect or
provide for the inspection of vehicles at least annually. In addition to scheduled annual inspections
and reinspections scheduled for the purpose of verifying that deficiencies have been corrected,
unannounced inspections of any vehicle may be conducted.
(b) On determining that a vehicle or vehicle equipment is in a condition that is likely to cause
an accident or breakdown, the commissioner shall require the vehicle to be taken out of service
immediately. The commissioner shall require that vehicles and equipment not meeting standards
be repaired and brought into conformance with the standards and shall require written evidence of
compliance from the operator before allowing the operator to return the vehicle to service.
(c) The commissioner shall provide in the rules procedures for inspecting vehicles, removing
unsafe vehicles from service, determining and requiring compliance, and reviewing driver
qualifications.
(d) The commissioner shall design a distinctive decal to be issued to special transportation
service providers with a current certificate of compliance under this section. A decal is valid for
one year from the last day of the month in which it is issued. A person who is subject to the
operating standards adopted under this section may not provide special transportation service in a
vehicle that does not conspicuously display a decal issued by the commissioner.
    Subd. 4a. Certification of special transportation provider. The commissioner shall
annually evaluate or provide for the evaluation of each provider of special transportation service
regulated under this section and certify that the provider is in compliance with the standards
under this section.
    Subd. 5. Rules. The rules authorized under this section shall be adopted in accordance with
the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, sections 14.001 to 14.69.
    Subd. 6. Preemption of other requirements. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, ordinance,
or resolution to the contrary, an operator of special transportation service that has been issued a
current certificate of compliance under subdivision 4a for vehicles used to provide that service
is not required to obtain any other state or local permit, license or certificate as a condition of
operating the vehicles for that purpose. This subdivision does not exempt any vehicle from
the requirements imposed on vehicles generally as a condition of using the public streets and
highways.
(b) The requirements of sections 169.781 to 169.783 and chapter 221 do not apply to
vehicles when they are being operated under a current certificate of compliance issued by the
commissioner.
    Subd. 7. Enforcement. No state agency, political subdivision, or other public agency
shall provide any capital or operating assistance to or reimbursement for special transportation
service unless the operator providing the service has a current certificate of compliance issued
under subdivision 4a.
    Subd. 8. Administrative penalties. The commissioner may issue an order requiring
violations of this section and the operating standards adopted under this section to be corrected
and assessing monetary penalties of up to $1,000 for all violations identified during a single
inspection, investigation, or audit. Section 221.036 applies to administrative penalty orders issued
under this section or section 174.315. The commissioner shall suspend, without a hearing, a
special transportation service provider's certificate of compliance for failure to pay, or make
satisfactory arrangements to pay, an administrative penalty when due.
Penalties collected under this section must be deposited in the state treasury and credited
to the trunk highway fund.
    Subd. 9. Complaint data; classification. When information is furnished to the Department
of Transportation that alleges a violation of this section, an operating standard adopted under this
section, or section 174.315, the following data are classified as confidential data or protected
nonpublic data:
(1) names of complainants;
(2) complaint letters; and
(3) other unsolicited data when furnished by a person who is not the subject of the data and
who is not a department employee.
History: Ex1979 c 1 s 28; 1982 c 424 s 130; 1982 c 556 s 2; 1984 c 654 art 5 s 58; 1987 c
88 s 1-7; 1987 c 354 s 8; 1987 c 384 art 2 s 1; 1989 c 209 art 2 s 1; 1989 c 318 s 6; 1990 c 422 s
10; 1992 c 578 s 12; 1993 c 339 s 1; 1995 c 155 s 3-8; 1Sp2003 c 14 art 3 s 1