BILL REQ. #:  H-1466.1 

Read first time 02/10/11.   Referred to Committee on Transportation.

     AN ACT Relating to requiring certain vehicles to stop at a weigh station for inspection and weight measurement; adding a new section to chapter 46.44 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 46.44 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Upon entering the state, any vehicle or combination of vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of more than sixty thousand pounds and transporting cattle must immediately stop at a port of entry or weigh station as established by the Washington state department of transportation and submit to inspection, grading, or weighing, and for compliance with the laws of the state of Washington, including animal health requirements.
     (2) The requirement of subsection (1) of this section does not apply to the operator of a vehicle in possession of a pasture permit or cattle consigned to a public auction or sales yard.
     (3) Operation of any vehicle or combination of vehicles in violation of this section is prima facie evidence that the owner of the vehicle or combination of vehicles caused or permitted the vehicle or combination of vehicles to be so operated, and the owner is liable for any penalties imposed under this section.
     (4) The penalty for failure to comply with this section is one thousand dollars. All fines collected under this section must be deposited in the motor vehicle fund established under RCW 46.68.070 to be used for road maintenance purposes in the counties described in subsection (5) of this section.
     (5) The requirements and penalties in this section apply only in a county located east of the crest of the Cascade mountains with a population of at least four hundred fifty thousand and an adjacent county with a population of at least thirteen thousand but less than fifteen thousand.