Transportation (Vehicle Registration)

Amend KRS 281.600 to require the Department of Vehicle Registration to enforce federal standards for motor carriers contained in Title 49 of the United States Code and the ensuing federal regulations, unless otherwise exempted; eliminate existing exemptions from certain federal regulations for fertilizer wagons.

Amend KRS 186.240 to require the Transportation Cabinet to produce an optional noncommercial standard license plate, available to individuals 65 years of age or older, that is of a distinct design and color than other standard plates; require the Transportation Cabinet to publish educational and public service materials regard the availability and meaning of the plate; EFFECTIVE January 1, 2027.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 158 to define terms; allow the use of camera monitoring systems on school buses operated by a school district and allow the enforcement of a civil penalty for stop arm camera violations recorded by a camera monitoring system; establish the amount of the civil penalty; require that the revenue generated from a civil penalty be retained by the school district; allow a law enforcement agency to charge a fee of $25 from every civil penalty enforced by the law enforcement agency; require specific notice for a stop arm camera violation; establish defenses to a violation; establish procedures for a contest to a violation; allow for suspension of motor vehicle registration for failure to timely pay a penalty; require a school district or law enforcement agency to notify the Transportation Cabinet of the need to release a motor vehicle registration suspension within 1 business day of payment; amend KRS 189.370 to require traffic in the opposite direction of a school or church bus to stop for the bus on a highway that is not divided by an elevated barrier or unpaved median;amend KRS 189.990 to increase the maximum fines for failing to stop for a school or church bus that is receiving or discharging passengers.

Amend KRS 190.058 to establish the motor vehicle commission fund; direct all license fees collected under KRS Chapter 190 to be deposited into the fund; set forth uses of the fund; provide that fund amounts not expended at the end of a fiscal year not lapse but instead be carried forward to the next fiscal year.

Amend KRS 138.220 to set a single excise tax on gasoline and special fuels; set initial base rate at 29.6 cents per gallon (cpg); subject tax to annual adjustment; eliminate references to taxation on the average wholesale price of gasoline and the supplemental tax on gasoline and special fuels; require annual notification to motor fuel dealers of the adjusted rate of the excise tax on gasoline and special fuels for each upcoming fiscal year; amend KRS 138.660 to set the initial base rate for the heavy equipment motor carrier surtax for gasoline at 2.2 cpg for fiscal year 26-27 and 4.3 cpg for fiscal year 27-28 and set the rate for special fuels at 3.6 cpg for fiscal year 26-27 and 7.2 cpg for fiscal year 27-28; subject the surtax to annual adjustment; create a new section of KRS Chapter 138 to define "taxes"; provide a mechanism for annual adjustment of the excise tax on gasoline and special fuels and the heavy equipment motor carrier surtax based on changes in the National Highway Construction Cost Index 2.0; allow these taxes to increase or decrease no more than 5% from one year to the next, subject to the statutory minimums; amend KRS 186.018 to increase the fee for a driving history record from $3 to $6; amend KRS 186.020 to eliminate the requirement to present a vehicle's registration receipt when renewing the vehicle registration and allow mail or online registration renewal with no additional fee; amend KRS 186.040 to eliminate the $30 county clerk fee for motor carrier registrations on vehicles in excess of 44,000 pounds; increase the county clerk fee for motor vehicle registrations from $6 to $8; amend KRS 186.050 to increase to state fee for motor vehicle registrations from $11.50 to $22; increase other state registration fees; provide for a $10 late charge for vehicle registrations not renewed within 30 days of expiration; make technical correction; amend KRS 186.162, 186.180, and 186.240 to conform; amend KRS 186.531 to set the reinstatement fee for a suspended operator's license at $100 and provide for distribution of funds; amend KRS 281A.150 to increase reinstatement fees for suspended CDLs from $50 to $100; amend KRS 186A.130 and 186A.245 to set the fee for an initial title at $25, the fee for a duplicate or replacement title at $10, and the fee for a speed title at $40, and adjust the distribution of fees between the Transportation Cabinet and the county clerk; amend KRS 189.574 to increase to fee for state traffic school from $15 to $50; create a new section of KRS Chapter 174 to create the multimodal transportation fund, specify allowable uses for moneys in the fund; amend KRS 177.320 and 177.365, regarding allocation of a portion of fuel tax revenue to county road aid funds and municipal road aid funds; change the revenue-sharing formula on the portion of fuel tax revenue available for revenue sharing which exceeds $825 million in any year from 18.3% to counties and 7.7% to cities to 13% for each fund; amend KRS 176.080 to establish limitations and awarding of single bid construction contracts the exceed, engineer's estimates, require reporting of such contracts; amend KRS 176.210 to prohibit the Department of Highways from revealing the identities of eligible bidders on a project until the project bid letting; amend KRS 138.210 to delete the definitions for "average wholesale price," "average wholesale floor price," and "quarterly survey value"; amend KRS 138.695, 138.270, 42.409, 234.320, 234.380, and 186A.035 to conform; repeal KRS 138.228, regarding the calculation of average wholesale price of gasoline, KRS 138.4602, regarding determination of total consideration on vehicles purchased between 2009 and 2014, and KRS 175.505, regarding the debt payment acceleration fund for turnpike authority debt; EFFECTIVE, in part, July, 1, 2026, and January 1, 2027; EMERGENCY.