Committee recommends passage of bill to exempt pre-2000 vehicles from titling

The Finance Division II committee voted to recommend HB 14 21, a measure that would exempt many motor vehicles manufactured before 2000 from the state's title requirement.

Chair opened the item and invited the Department of Motor Vehicles to explain the bill's fiscal note. "Those numbers are based on the number of new titles that were actually issued for vehicles that fell into that date range," Jennifer O'Leary, registration bureau coordinator for the DMV, told the committee. She said the fiscal estimate multiplies the number of title applications in 2024 by the $35 title fee and therefore represents an upper-bound projection of lost fee revenue.

Representative Popovich, the prime sponsor, argued the change restores a rolling 20-year policy after earlier freezes pushed the effective date farther back. "So the fact that we are going back to 20 years is already a compromise," Popovich said, adding he expects the reduction in title issuance to be offset by decreased staffing and processing costs. "On the net, while this decreases revenues, it will also decrease certain expenditures. So it's a wash."

Members asked whether owners would still be able to obtain a voluntary title. O'Leary said the bill includes language to allow owners to seek a title and comply with ownership-verification requirements when they opt to do so.

Following discussion and a motion by Popovich, the committee took a roll call and recorded the recommendation of "ought to pass". The chair closed discussion and moved to the next item.

Next steps: The committee's legislative recommendation will be reported to the broader Finance Committee as the bill advances through the process.