Off-road Vehicles:
off-highway vehicles; user fee

HB 2443 establishes a user fee for off-road vehicles and a program for using those fees.  It requires anyone with an off-highway vehicle that is less than 1800 pounds and that is designed by the manufacturer primarily for travel over unimproved terrain and who is driving on an off-highway trail or in an off-highway use area to have an indicia issued by the Arizona Department of Transportation.  The amount of the fee would be determined by the Department in consultation with Game and Fish and State Parks.  The indicia are valid for one year.  The Director of ADOT will also prescribe the design and placement of the indicia.

Seventy percent of the dollars generated by the fee go to the off-road vehicle recreation fund and thirty percent go to the highway user revenue fund (commonly referred to as the HURF and used to build roads and freeways).

 Of the seventy percent of the dollars that go to the off-highway vehicle recreation fund, HB2443 authorizes the Arizona Game and Fish Department to spend up to 35 percent on information and education programs for off-highway vehicle recreation and on law enforcement activities relating to off-highway vehicles.

 Also, from these dollars, the state land department is authorized to spend up to five percent to allow occupants of off-highway vehicles with user indicia to cross state trust lands on existing roads, trails, and designated routes. 

The remaining 60 percent goes to the Arizona State Parks Board for funding staff and to establish an OHV program based on the priorities in the off-highway vehicle plan; to fund enforcement of off-highway vehicle laws; to establish off-highway vehicle information and environmental education programs; to mitigate damage to the land; to designate, construct, maintain, manage and acquire land for OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas and OHV trails; and for necessary environmental historical and cultural clearance or compliance activities for proposed OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas, and OHV trails.  The allocation of these dollars is again

Status

After the failure of the bill, there were some calls about Sierra Club lobbying against it.  We were not.  We did try to improve the bill, asked for additional amendments, and had decided we would need to try and work on getting State Parks to be more inclusive in appointing the group that directs the grants and also to ensure that the dollars were allocated in a manner to do minimal damage.

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Background

The Sierra Club was neutral on HB2443 and therefore did not ask members to vote for or against the bill.  We merely provided the following information.  HB2443 is a measure which establishes a user fee for off-road vehicles.  We support increasing funding for law enforcement and the safety provisions in the bill as well as the language that prescribes where these vehicles are allowed and where they are not allowed.  We still have some concerns about the legislation, however. 

Our main concern about the legislation continues to be the allocation of the 60 percent of the dollars that will go to grants administered by Arizona State Parks.  These grants can be used for various activities including  to fund enforcement of off-highway vehicle (OHV) laws; to establish off-highway vehicle information and environmental education programs; to mitigate damage to the land; to designate, construct, maintain, manage and acquire land for OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas, and OHV trails; and for necessary environmental historical and cultural clearance or compliance activities for proposed OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas, and OHV trails.  Because the committee that makes recommendations to the Arizona Parks Board and that determines the direction of the dollars is stacked with off-road vehicle users, we are very concerned that these grant dollars will be used primarily to build trails and other facilities – a stated purpose of several of the proponents of the legislation – and will open up even more areas for off-road vehicle use, which will mean more loss of wildlife habitat and more destruction of vegetation, soil erosion, and negative impacts to water quality. 

There is some legislative intent language to front load dollars in existing OHV use areas, but that is only for the early use of the dollars.  Ultimately, the dollars could go entirely to open up more and more of our public lands to use by OHVs and for promotion of OHV activities.  This is a serious concern as the increasing use and proliferation of OHVs is causing enormous damage to our natural resources, to wildlife and wildlife habitat, and to our public lands.  Dollars should be limited to use on existing OHV use areas and targeted to mitigation and restoration of damage to the land, closing illegal trails and additional dollars specifically for local law enforcement. 

HB 2443 establishes a user fee for off-road vehicles and a program for using those fees.  It requires anyone with an off-highway vehicle that is less than 1800 pounds and that is designed by the manufacturer primarily for travel over unimproved terrain and who is driving on an off-highway trail or in an off-highway use area to have an indicia issued by the Arizona Department of Transportation.  The amount of the fee would be determined by the Department in consultation with Game and Fish and State Parks.  The indicia are valid for one year.  The Director of ADOT will also prescribe the design and placement of the indicia.

Seventy percent of the dollars generated by the fee go to the off-road vehicle recreation fund and thirty percent go to the highway user revenue fund (commonly referred to as the HURF and used to build roads and freeways).

Of the seventy percent of the dollars that go to the off-highway vehicle recreation fund, HB2443 authorizes the Arizona Game and Fish Department to spend up to 35 percent on information and education programs for off-highway vehicle recreation and on law enforcement activities relating to off-highway vehicles, including seven full-time law enforcement officers.

Also, from these dollars, the state land department is authorized to spend up to five percent to allow occupants of off-highway vehicles with user indicia to cross state trust lands on existing roads, trails, and designated routes. 

The remaining 60 percent goes to the Arizona State Parks Board for funding staff and to establish an OHV program based on the priorities in the off-highway vehicle plan; to fund enforcement of off-highway vehicle laws; to establish off-highway vehicle information and environmental education programs; to mitigate damage to the land; to designate, construct, maintain, manage and acquire land for OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas and OHV trails; and for necessary environmental historical and cultural clearance or compliance activities for proposed OHV recreation facilities, OHV use areas, and OHV trails.  The allocation of these dollars is again determined by an off-highway vehicle plan prepared by the Arizona State Parks Board (Currently, the recommendations come from the Off-Highway Vehicle Advisory Committee which stacked with OHV users.)

Any off-highway vehicles used for agricultural, ranching, construction, mining or building trade purposes are exempt from the fee.

It also exempts special events and operation on private or Native American lands if the person has permission, loading and unloading of the vehicle, and operation during a period of substantial emergency.

HB2443 requires owners of all-terrain vehicles and off-highway vehicles to obtain a title for these vehicles which runs with the vehicle and to obtain a new certificate when ownership changes hands.  It exempts all-terrain vehicles and off-highway vehicles from the paying the vehicle license tax if they are designed primarily for travel on unimproved roads and they are less than 1800 pounds.

In addition to that, HB2443:

• Prohibits a person from driving an OHV off an existing road, trail or route in a manner that causes damage to wildlife habitat, riparian areas, cultural or natural resources or property or improvements.
• Prohibits a person from driving these vehicles on roads, trails, routes or areas that have been closed as indicated in rules or regulations of a federal or state agency or any county or municipality or by proper posting if the land is private land.  They cannot drive over unimproved roads, trails, route or areas unless driving in those areas is allowed by rule or regulation.  They can only drive these vehicles on roads, trails routes or areas that are open as indicated in rules or regulations of a federal agency, this state, a county or municipality. 
• Prohibits operation of an off-highway vehicle in connection with acts of vandalism harassment of wildlife or domestic animals; damage to the environment, including excessive air, water and land pollution; abuse of the watershed; and impairment of plant and animal life.
• Prohibits anyone other than an agent for the federal, state, county town or city agency to place or remove a regulatory sign governing off-highway vehicles.

 (The bullet points above are all class 3 misdemeanors.)

HB2443 requires that all off-highway vehicles have:

• Brakes adequate to control the vehicle and to stop and hold the vehicle under normal operating conditions;
• Lighted headlight and tail lights that meet or exceed the equipment manufacture guidelines and if they are operating the vehicle between one-half hour after sunset and one-half hour before sunrise;
• A muffler or other noise dissipative device to prevent noise above 96 decibels, unless operating on a closed course;
• A spark arrestor device that is approved by the USDA; and
• A safety flag.

It requires a person under eighteen to wear protective headgear.

It prohibits off-highway vehicle events on any land or highway in this state unless it is authorized by the appropriate agency that has jurisdiction over the land or highway or by the landowner.

(Violations of the items above are civil traffic violations.)

HB2443 authorizes Game and Fish, in consultation with the Arizona Department of Transportation, to adopt rules to implement this section and to prescribe additional equipment requirements.