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Please keep us abreast of any replies and/or changes by posting to this same thread. The Members subscribed to this thread will therefore be automatically notified of your updates.Also, here's what I sent to the Idaho DMV board secretary just moments ago (in reference to the letter which EasternEmpire posted on page 1 of this thread):
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Dear Sue,
Currently, the Idaho DMV is not registering or titling decommissioned military vehicles. In a letter dated 16 November 2017 (please see attachment), Alberto Gonzales provides the reasoning for this decision citing both state and federal law. The key argument which was made, was that “The 25-year FMVSS exemption only pertains to grey market (imported) vehicles.”
The citation provided at the bottom of his letter was 49 U.S. Code § 30112 (b9) “ – 25-year FMVSS exemption for imported vehicles”. For clarity, the subsection reads as follows:
“( 9 ) a motor vehicle that is at least 25 years old; or”
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/30112
This provision makes no mention of an importation requirement. While there are other parts of 49 U.S. Code § 30112 that also offer other exemptions for imported vehicles, (b9) clearly applies to all vehicles as no other criteria beyond being at least 25 years old was included. It is for this reason that Idaho Code 49-402(10) does not apply to many of these vehicles (those which are at least 25 years old), as they are covered under the 49 U.S. Code § 30112 (b9) exemption.
There’s another reason why Idaho Code 49-402(10) (“Vehicles that do not meet FMVSS shall not be registered”) does not apply to such vehicles. To be sure, Idaho Code 49-107(5) defines the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS):
(5) "Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS)" means those safety standards established by the national highway traffic safety administration, under title 49 CFR part 500-599, for the safe construction and manufacturing of self-propelled motorized vehicles for operation on public highways. Such vehicles as originally designed and manufactured shall be so certified by the manufacturer to meet the federal motor vehicle safety standards or the standards in force for a given model year or as certified by the national highway traffic safety administration.
With this in mind, 49 CFR 571.7 (c) specifically exempts military vehicles from FMVSS applicability:
“(c) Military vehicles. No standard applies to a vehicle or item of equipment manufactured for, and sold directly to, the Armed Forces of the United States in conformity with contractual specifications.”
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/571.7
Since decommissioned military vehicles clearly fit this description, they are exempted from FMVSS requirements. Note that no criteria exists in this provision which states that this exemption only applies as long as the vehicle is owned by the military, nor are there any criteria which revokes this exemption upon the vehicle’s sale to the general public. Therefore, decommissioned military vehicles under this provision are FMVSS compliant. This means that Idaho Code 49-402(10) does not apply to these vehicles. If I had to guess on the reasoning behind this, it would be “if they’re safe enough for the military to operate on highways, they’re safe enough for civilians to operate on highways – the operator has nothing to do with the vehicle’s characteristics”.
I respectfully request that the board review the Idaho DMV’s stance on the titling and registration of decommissioned military vehicles in Idaho, and the legalities thereof. I believe that sufficient legislation exists which legally permits the Idaho DMV to title and register these vehicles and that the current policy had been implemented erroneously.
Very Respectfully,
(Me)
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At minimum, this should get them talking, you think?
Thank you.