commercial motor vehicle; liability insurance

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Liability Insurance for Agricultural Commodity Transport

This bill requires motor carriers transporting agricultural commodities in Arizona to have liability insurance sufficient to cover emergency towing and recovery services.

What This Bill Does

• Requires motor carriers transporting agricultural goods within Arizona to maintain a liability policy that covers emergency towing and recovery services.
• Specifies that the required liability coverage can be met through cargo insurance or a surety bond approved by the department.
• Allows towing operators to place a lien on unpaid amounts for emergency services provided to commercial vehicles carrying agricultural commodities.
• Requires towing operators to release liens once payments are made and record these releases with the Secretary of State's office.

Who It Names or Affects

• Motor carriers transporting agricultural goods within Arizona
• Towing and recovery service providers

Terms To Know

Agricultural commodity

Farm products such as produce, hay, feed, livestock feed products, raw poultry, citrus, and other food or agricultural goods transported for commercial purposes.

Emergency towing and recovery services

Services like towing, cleanup, removal, transport, storage, disposal, and roadway cleanup requested by law enforcement or public authorities.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not apply to farm-to-field operations, private hauling by farmers or ranchers, or noncommercial vehicles.
• It is unclear how this will be enforced or what penalties might exist for non-compliance.

Official Summary Text

HB4088 - 572R - House Bill Summary

ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

57th
Legislature, 2nd Regular Session

Majority Research Staff

HB4088
:
commercial motor vehicle; liability insurance

Sponsor:
Representative Lopez, LD 16

Committee
on Commerce

Overview

Mandates
motor carriers transporting agricultural commodities to maintain a liability
policy sufficient to cover emergency towing and recovery services.

History

Statute prescribes financial responsibility requirements
which mandate individuals operating motor vehicles in furtherance of a
commercial enterprise maintain combined single limit liability insurance based
on the vehicles declared gross weight. For vehicles transporting nonhazardous
property, the insurance minimum for vehicles weighting between 20,001 and
26,000 pounds is $300,000 and for vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds is
$750,000 (
A.R.S. � 28-4033
).

Motor carrier
is a person who operates or causes to be operated
a commercial motor vehicle on a public highway.
Commercial motor vehicle
as
a motor vehicle designed, used or maintained to transport passengers or
property in the furtherance of a commercial enterprise on Arizona highways,
including a vehicle that has either a gross weight of 26,001 or more pounds and
that is used for intrastate commerce
(A.R.S. �
28-5201
).

Provisions

1.

Requires
motor carriers transporting agricultural commodities on Arizona highways for
intrastate commerce to maintain a liability policy that is sufficient to cover

emergency towing and recovery services. (Sec. 1)

2.

Specifies
the liability policy must be satisfied by cargo insurance coverage applicable
to the agricultural commodity being transported or a surety bond or other
approved financial security. (Sec.1)

3.

Stipulates
any unpaid amount owed to an operator for providing emergency towing and recovery
services to a commercial motor vehicle towing agricultural commodities is a
lien on the commercial motor vehicle and agricultural commodity of the motor
carrier. (Sec. 1)

4.

Allows the towing
or recovery operator to perfect the lien against the commercial motor vehicle
owner by recording a notice of the lien in the Office of the Secretary of State.
(Sec. 1)

5.

Instructs
the towing or recovery operator to issue a lien release, upon satisfaction, to
the owner of the commercial motor vehicle and record the release in the Office
of the Secretary of State. (Sec. 1)

6.

Exempts the
following from the liability policy requirements:

a.

farm-to-field
operations;

b.

private
hauling or self-hauling by a farmer or rancher; and

c.

a
noncommercial or passenger vehicle. (Sec. 1)

7.

Defines
agricultural
commodity
and
emergency towing and recovery services.
(Sec. 1)

8.

9.

10.

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4088

12.

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13.

14.

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Current Bill Text

HB4088 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
commercial motor vehicle; liability insurance

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HB 4088

Introduced by

Representatives
Lopez: Biasiucci, Marshall, Martinez, Nguyen, Taylor, Weninger, Willoughby,
Wilmeth

AN
ACT

Amending title 28, Chapter 14, Article 2,
Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 28-5245; relating to
COMMERCIAL motor vehicles.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 28, chapter 14, article 2,
Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 28-5245, to read:

START_STATUTE
28-5245.

Commercial agricultural commodity; liability policy;
requirements; lien; definitions

A. A motor carrier who is
transporting agricultural commodities on highways in this state for the
purposes of intrastate commerce shall maintain a liability policy that is
sufficient to cover emergency towing and recovery services. The
liability policy shall be satisfied by either of the following:

1. Cargo insurance coverage
applicable to the agricultural commodity being transported.

2. A surety bond or other financial
security approved by the department.

B. If a towing or recovery operator
provides emergency towing and recovery services for a roadway incident that
involves a commercial motor VEHICLE that is towing agricultural commodities and
the towing or recovery operator is not paid for the emergency towing and
recovery services, any unpaid amount owed is a lien beginning on the date the
amount became due on the commercial motor vehicle and agricultural commodity
that belongs to the motor carrier of the commercial motor vehicle. The
towing or recovery operator may perfect the lien against the commercial motor
vehicle owner by recording a notice of the lien in the office of the secretary
of state. If the lien imposed by this subsection is satisfied, the
towing or recovery operator shall issue a release of the lien to the owner of
the commercial motor vehicle and shall record the release in the office of the
secretary of state.

C. This section does not apply to:

1. farm-to-field
operations.

2. Private hauling or self-hauling
by a farmer or rancher.

3. A noncommercial vehicle or
passenger vehicle.

D. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Agricultural commodity"
means a farm product, including produce, hay, feed, livestock feed products,
raw poultry, citrus and other food or agricultural goods transported for
commercial purposes.

2. "Emergency towing and
recovery services" means towing, recovery, cleanup, removal, transport,
storage, disposal and roadway cleanup services that are performed at the
request or direction of a law enforcement agency or public authority.
END_STATUTE