Senate Bill 170
The plate keeps getting fuller and RAD is about to get an education on another new topic (which is less fun than installing bib mousse): How Bills go through the Senant. For the next year or so, RAD will be dabbling in Nevada’s 81st Legislative Session in connection with the advocacy for SB 170 which proposes to make amendments to NRS 490 – the statute governing off-highway vehicles.
In the life cycle of bills, SB170 is just a baby right now and only introduced to the Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure on March 4, 2021. You can track the bill and all of its activity here.
In the life cycle of bills, SB170 is just a baby right now and only introduced to the Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure on March 4, 2021. You can track the bill and all of its activity here.
SB170 was proposed as a Bill Draft Request by the Legislative Committee on Public Lands. The Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (the agency under which the Nevada OHV Commission operates) submitted three recommendations which were combined into one bill:
Each of these points are dissected below.
On March 15th there was an initial hearing on the Bill in the Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure. Nikhil Narkhede – the Program Manager for the Nevada OHV Program (aka: the guy makes sure RAD gets the grant money we are awarded) – did a great job presenting the concept of this Bill and explaining the technical details to people who are out of touch with OHV issues.
- To replace the current OHV registration system operated by the DMV with a simpler annual use decal.
- That Nevada will no longer accept any out-of-state OHV registrations, and out-of-state visitors must purchase the same use decal as in-state users.
- Require children under the age of 16 to wear helmets while operating or being a passenger in an OHV.
Each of these points are dissected below.
On March 15th there was an initial hearing on the Bill in the Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure. Nikhil Narkhede – the Program Manager for the Nevada OHV Program (aka: the guy makes sure RAD gets the grant money we are awarded) – did a great job presenting the concept of this Bill and explaining the technical details to people who are out of touch with OHV issues.
1. Makeover to the OHV Registration Process
If you were to poll the human race and ask them, “Do you want to work with the DMV less?" ... predicting the results would be a no-brainer.
This part of the Bill has one goal: remove the DMV from the administration of the OHV Program entirely and make obtaining a Nevada OHV sticker as simple and accessible as possible. The further hope is that by creating an easier process for fee payments the OHV Program would experience increased compliance and more funding as a biproduct, as it is understood that a significant amount of noncompliance is caused by the cumbersome process created by the DMV and their forms (however, it is difficult to substantiate this claim with data).
The Bill proposes that instead of the DMV collecting your money and “registering” your bike then transferring the funds to the OHV Program… the OHV Program would collect the money directly and simply issue an annual use decal. The concept is that the decal would be available for purchase online (which is then mailed to you) or also available for purchase over the counter through third-party business vendors who want to participate and which the State authorizes (similar to how some shops sell California OHV stickers here). The use decal would be valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. The operator of the OHV does not need to be the same person who purchased the decal. If you were to sell your OHV, the purchaser would have the benefit of whatever time is left on the decal attached to the OHV. The intent is also that the sticker would remain the same size as it currently is (3” x 3.5” with a certain size font). The decal is the same no matter what year, make, model or type of OHV.
An amendment has already been submitted to do away with the term “registration” throughout the NRS language (as the word “registration” carries specific meaning when used in conjunction with vehicles and is associated with a vehicles VIN and ownership information). Instead, the new term would be “OHV Decal” which is more fitting to the character of this change – which is that a decal is available for purchase by anyone, regardless of VIN or owner information.
The DMV will always be the sole agency involved with issuing titles, as it is the only agency with authority to issue the document that evidences legal ownership of any vehicle (whether street legal or not). If you own the bike you are the titled owner – the title certificate is what attaches the VIN of your bike to your name.
RAD supports this common sense reworking of the sticker process to make things easier for everyone, and wrote a letter supporting this position.
This part of the Bill has one goal: remove the DMV from the administration of the OHV Program entirely and make obtaining a Nevada OHV sticker as simple and accessible as possible. The further hope is that by creating an easier process for fee payments the OHV Program would experience increased compliance and more funding as a biproduct, as it is understood that a significant amount of noncompliance is caused by the cumbersome process created by the DMV and their forms (however, it is difficult to substantiate this claim with data).
The Bill proposes that instead of the DMV collecting your money and “registering” your bike then transferring the funds to the OHV Program… the OHV Program would collect the money directly and simply issue an annual use decal. The concept is that the decal would be available for purchase online (which is then mailed to you) or also available for purchase over the counter through third-party business vendors who want to participate and which the State authorizes (similar to how some shops sell California OHV stickers here). The use decal would be valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. The operator of the OHV does not need to be the same person who purchased the decal. If you were to sell your OHV, the purchaser would have the benefit of whatever time is left on the decal attached to the OHV. The intent is also that the sticker would remain the same size as it currently is (3” x 3.5” with a certain size font). The decal is the same no matter what year, make, model or type of OHV.
An amendment has already been submitted to do away with the term “registration” throughout the NRS language (as the word “registration” carries specific meaning when used in conjunction with vehicles and is associated with a vehicles VIN and ownership information). Instead, the new term would be “OHV Decal” which is more fitting to the character of this change – which is that a decal is available for purchase by anyone, regardless of VIN or owner information.
The DMV will always be the sole agency involved with issuing titles, as it is the only agency with authority to issue the document that evidences legal ownership of any vehicle (whether street legal or not). If you own the bike you are the titled owner – the title certificate is what attaches the VIN of your bike to your name.
RAD supports this common sense reworking of the sticker process to make things easier for everyone, and wrote a letter supporting this position.
2. Ending Reciprocity
The objective here is to simply bring more funds to the Nevada OHV Program so that more projects can be supported. For 2020 and 2021, the Program only had a little over $1 Million to give out in grant funding for projects across the entire state. As we have explained on many platforms at every opportunity we get, the Nevada OHV Program is a unique bucket of money in that it is not commingled with the state’s general fund and may only be used for OHV-specific projects. The only beneficiaries of the OHV Program are the individuals who pay into it.
While lack of compliance is one cause (hoped to be assisted by Part 1), the Program is also missing out on funds from out-of-state tourists who visit the Nevada trail systems without paying into the Program designed to support it.
Two things to keep in mind about this:
RAD also supports this portion of the Bill as it does not adversely affect Nevada riders – it will only generate more revenue for the Program that awards grants to RAD (and other user groups like us) for projects in our state, which benefits both Nevadans and out-of-state visitors using the trails.
While lack of compliance is one cause (hoped to be assisted by Part 1), the Program is also missing out on funds from out-of-state tourists who visit the Nevada trail systems without paying into the Program designed to support it.
Two things to keep in mind about this:
- If you are a Nevada resident, this amendment would not impact you whatsoever.
- Nevada ending its reciprocity to other states does not change the laws of the other states which accept Nevada registration stickers (only California and Oregon, currently). To break this point down further, Nevada actually accepts OHV registration stickers from ALL other states regardless of whether or not that other state accepts Nevada stickers (NRS 490.082(3)(c)). For example, Nevada would accept a Utah registration sticker – but Utah does not accept a Nevada sticker. With this proposed amendment, California would still accept a Nevada sticker (just Nevada would not accept a California sticker).
RAD also supports this portion of the Bill as it does not adversely affect Nevada riders – it will only generate more revenue for the Program that awards grants to RAD (and other user groups like us) for projects in our state, which benefits both Nevadans and out-of-state visitors using the trails.
3. Helmets Required For Minors Under 16
This is self-explanatory and arose out of concern for trauma injuries in children not wearing helmets.
It is specified within the Bill that a violation of this law would not be a moving traffic violation; may not be recorded by the DMV on a driving record; is not grounds for the government to repossess your child and does not constitute abuse, neglect, endangerment or (either direct or contributory) by legal definition. The parent would just be issued a fine.
RAD abstained from commenting on this portion of the Bill.
It is specified within the Bill that a violation of this law would not be a moving traffic violation; may not be recorded by the DMV on a driving record; is not grounds for the government to repossess your child and does not constitute abuse, neglect, endangerment or (either direct or contributory) by legal definition. The parent would just be issued a fine.
RAD abstained from commenting on this portion of the Bill.
Some Other Nuances
As a biproduct of removing the DMV from the OHV fee/decal process, the DMV representative is also removed as an ex officio (aka: non-voting) member on the Nevada Commission on Off-Highway Vehicles. The proposed replacement for another non-voting member is an individual from the Department of Wildlife.
Relating to side-by-sides, if you want to operate on certain allowable public roads there is currently an optional different form of registration sticker that you can apply to through the DMV. As part of the simplification process in Part 1, the law would be changed so that there is only one OHV decal (not two) and if you are going to drive your side-by-side on the street you need to have liability insurance (unchanged).
While this is nothing new, you still aren’t required to purchase an OHV decal if:
Lastly, nothing within this legislation has an affect on the price of the annual fees.
Relating to side-by-sides, if you want to operate on certain allowable public roads there is currently an optional different form of registration sticker that you can apply to through the DMV. As part of the simplification process in Part 1, the law would be changed so that there is only one OHV decal (not two) and if you are going to drive your side-by-side on the street you need to have liability insurance (unchanged).
While this is nothing new, you still aren’t required to purchase an OHV decal if:
- The OHV is not operated on public land
- The OHV is operated in an organized race or event that is conducted by a permit issued by the proper jurisdiction (aka: MRANN races)
- The OHV was manufactured before 1976.
- The OHV has a displacement of under 70cc’s
Lastly, nothing within this legislation has an affect on the price of the annual fees.
Next Steps
The Bill is now up for vote by the Senate Committee, and the prognosis is that it will pass as it has received a lot of diverse support. After it is passed, it moves onto the Nevada House Assembly, which it will be nit-picked from all angles with more hearings. When there are no further changes, it will go to the Senate floor for final vote. The objective is for the Bill to become law by July 1, 2022.
We are going to be actively in touch with this interesting process and will be submitting strategic comments and proposals as the Bill evolves, and will let you know when we need some participation from our RAD community.
If you’ve made it this far…. Thank you for reading. :)
We are going to be actively in touch with this interesting process and will be submitting strategic comments and proposals as the Bill evolves, and will let you know when we need some participation from our RAD community.
If you’ve made it this far…. Thank you for reading. :)
