Off-highway vehicles.

(1) Existing law generally requires motor vehicles that are operated or used exclusively off the highways to be issued and display an identification plate or device issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Under existing law, certain vehicles are exempt from this requirement, including 4-wheeled motor vehicles operated solely in organized racing or competitive events upon a closed course, as specified. Existing law permits a motorcycle issued a special transportation identification device to be transported on a highway to and from a closed course. Existing law authorizes a special transportation identification device to be issued upon payment of a fee. This bill, effective January 1, 2027, would repeal provisions relating to special transportation identification devices for motorcycles and corresponding fees, and would make other related conforming changes. The bill would additionally provide that competition all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are not exempt from identification, pursuant to vehicle identification requirements prescribed by the bill. (2) Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles, upon identifying an off-highway motor vehicle subject to identification, to issue to the owner a suitable identification plate or device that is capable of being attached to the vehicle, as specified. Existing law requires the department to determine the size, color, and letters or number of the identification plate or device issued for off-highway motor vehicles. A violation of the Vehicle Code is punishable as an infraction. This bill, commencing on January 1, 2027, would require, for the issuance or renewal of a competition identification, a specified configuration for the vehicle identification number and product identification number for an off-highway motor vehicle or ATV that is model year 2022 or later and is used solely for competition not on a public highway. (3) Existing law requires all identification plates or devices to be displayed in a specified manner, including on the left fork leg of a motorcycle, either horizontal or vertical, and visible from the left side of the motorcycle. This bill would require that a competition motorcycle display that identification plate or device on the left side of the motorcycle, commencing January 1, 2027. Because a violation of this requirement would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) Existing law generally imposes specified fees on off-highway motor vehicles, including, among others, a service fee of $7 for the issuance or renewal of identification of off-highway motor vehicles subject to identification and a special fee of $33 paid at the time of payment of the service fee. Existing law requires the special fees, specified use fees for state vehicular recreation areas, and other specified funds to be deposited in the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund, and requires moneys in the fund, upon appropriation, to be allocated for specified purposes related to off-highway recreation. This bill, commencing January 1, 2027, would instead impose specified fees on competition motorcycles and ATVs model year 2022 and newer, including a special fee of $42 for those vehicles that will be operated on public lands for which funds from the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund have been expended. The bill would require the department to collect that special fee at the time of issuance or renewal of a competition identification, and to deposit the fee in the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund, to be used exclusively for the reasonable costs to the Department of Parks and Recreation related to the activities of those vehicles that are conducted on public lands. The bill would require the reasonable costs of implementing the bill's identification requirements for off-highway motorcycles and ATVs to be reimbursed to the department from the Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund, subject to appropriation. (5) Existing law requires an off-highway motor vehicle to meet specified requirements, including, among others, a requirement that the vehicle be equipped with a spark arrester maintained in effective working order. Existing law generally exempts from those requirements certain off-highway motor vehicles being operated in an organized racing or competitive event upon a closed course. This bill, commencing January 1, 2027, would limit those exemptions by requiring competition-identified motorcycles and ATVs to be equipped with a muffler, spark arrester, and silencer or other device that limits noise emissions when operating on public lands. (6) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.