Off-highway Vehicle Certificates Of Title

Current law requires an off-highway vehicle to have a certificate of title to be transferred unless:

• It was first transferred before July 1, 2014, and not subsequently transferred to an off-highway vehicle dealer; or
• It was used exclusively for agricultural purposes on private land.

Section 2 of the bill requires all off-highway vehicle transfers to have a certificate of title on or after July 1, 2021, but the agricultural exemption is not changed. Section 1 exempts private transfers of off-highway vehicles from sales tax if the transfer occurred on or after July 1, 2014, and before July 1, 2021.

Current law authorizes motor vehicle dealers, salvage pools, and insurers to electronically access the department of revenue's ownership and lienholder records to verify motor vehicle ownership and lienholding information to prevent fraud. Section 3 authorizes off-highway vehicle dealers to access this system to verify the same information on off-highway vehicles for the same reasons.

Notwithstanding the requirement that an off-highway vehicle have a title to be purchased by a dealer, current law authorizes a dealer to purchase an off-highway vehicle that was initially sold before July 1, 2014, and was never titled. The dealer must obtain an affidavit from the owner and then use the affidavit to obtain a title. Section 4 extends this authorization and procedure to off-highway vehicles privately transferred on or after July 1, 2014, and before July 1, 2021.
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)