MINUTES OF THE
SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Sixty-seventh Session
April 20, 1993
The Senate Committee on Transportation was called to order by Chairman William R. O'Donnell, at 1:35 p.m., on Tuesday, April 20, 1993, in Room 226 of the Legislative Building, Carson City, Nevada. Exhibit A is the Meeting Agenda. Exhibit B is the Attendance Roster.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:
Senator William R. O'Donnell, Chairman
Senator Lawrence E. Jacobsen, Vice Chairman
Senator Leonard V. Nevin
Senator Joseph M. Neal, Jr.
Senator Thomas J. Hickey
Senator Lori L. Brown
COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT:
Senator Mark A. James (Excused)
GUEST LEGISLATORS PRESENT:
Senator Ernest E. Adler, Carson City, Capitol District
Senator Dean A. Rhoads, Northern Nevada District
STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT:
Paul Mouritsen, Senior Research Analyst
Terri Jo Wittenberg, Committee Secretary
OTHERS PRESENT:
Ron Hill, Deputy Director, Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT)
Jan Christopherson, Nevada Department of Transportation
Kimberly Bennion, Nevada Division of the California State Automobile Association (CSAA)
Chairman O'Donnell opened the hearing on Senate Bill (S.B.) 373.
S.B. 373: Increases maximum width of manufactured or mobile homes, or similar vehicles or structures, whose movement on highway may be specially authorized.
Senator Ernest E. Adler, Carson City, Capitol District, stated some of his constituents, in the mobile home business, have had problems moving modular mobile homes because they are too wide according to Nevada state law. He stated if Nevada is to get high quality mobile homes, then the width allowance does need to be increased.
Chairman O'Donnell questioned the difference between this and a previous bill.
Senator Adler responded this bill allows for homes to be 18 feet wide and the bill the Governor vetoed permitted 16 foot wide homes.
Senator Hickey stated he would vote for the bill if it pertained to railroad cars instead of roads.
Senator Brown asked if this legislation had been tried in other states.
Senator Adler concurred, citing that Arizona and Utah allow 16 foot wide homes.
Senator Neal commented that other states allow wider homes but once the home enters Nevada it becomes a problem.
Ron Hill, Deputy Director, Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) testified against the bill. He stated his concerns were for safety and this bill would open the doors to 18 foot wide loads. He commented many of the highways in Nevada are too narrow for even some 12 foot wide loads.
Senator Neal questioned the safety concern and the allowance of moving houses at certain times.
Mr. Hill answered that often the loads are on the shoulder of the road or that they cross over the center line. Mr. Hill stated the NDOT has the authority to close roads and grant times for larger loads to be moved. He stated the NDOT can allow 18 foot wide loads to travel on roads, but this bill would grant permission for any loads that large to be on the roads.
Senator Neal asked what the current width limit is.
Mr. Hill responded, 14 feet wide.
Jan Christopherson, Nevada Department of Transportation, testified anything over 8 feet 6 inches wide has to travel with a special permit, but mobile homes may not travel if they are more than 14 feet wide.
Senator Neal asked why the miners who brought their homes with them were allowed to do so.
Ms. Christopherson responded they were only allowed to do so if not bringing the home would have caused a financial hardship.
Ms. Christopherson stated the problem is if the manufacturers are allowed to make these homes then the NDOT is going to have to monitor them if they are on the state's highways.
Mr. Hill stated there would be a problem with allowing the large loads to travel even at certain times because of traffic in Las Vegas. He commented that there are problems other than traffic, such as drunk drivers and driver inattention.
Chairman O'Donnell commended Senator Adler for not spending money on the drafting of this bill. He stated with one minor change, it is the same bill the Governor vetoed.
Senator Brown stated the law in existence allows for up to 14 feet wide but those over 14 feet wide are not allowed even with a permit.
Mr. Hill concurred but stated the NDOT can make exceptions.
Senator Brown commented the bill has many limitations that are cited as safety concerns.
Ms. Christopherson stated this is due to pressure from the industry.
Senator Nevin suggested the bill gives too much discretion to the NDOT.
Ms. Christopherson stated the homes are not manufactured in Nevada so the movement of them is not allowed, but sometimes the NDOT faces pressures by the manufacturers to give out permits.
Senator Hickey asked if the bridges and tunnels could handle the movement.
Mr. Hill concurred stating the width of the bridges and tunnels are 18 feet. Mr. Hill stated the roadways are the real problem because the roads have to be blocked off for one way traffic.
Senator Dean A. Rhoads, Northern Nevada District, testified that he supports the bill. He spoke of a couple from Wisconsin who could not sell their large mobile home so they brought it with them to Nevada where (at the border) they had to hire a low-boy to haul it into Nevada. He stated this was the reason he introduced the bill last session. He said he understood the safety concerns, but the bill would increase the variety of homes for the working class people.
Chairman O'Donnell asked for the reasoning behind the Governor vetoing the, almost, identical bill.
Senator Rhoads suggested it was a result from the competition from other home manufacturers.
Chairman O'Donnell asked if mobile home manufacturers were going to be building these homes in Nevada.
Senator Rhoads stated he believed that they would.
Senator Brown suggested this could also be a problem for people who wanted to move from one park to another.
Senator Rhoads agreed, but stated the real problem is those people who want to move out of a depressed state.
Senator Neal asked what a low-boy was.
Senator Rhoads responded it is was large trailer used to haul large or heavy loads.
Senator Hickey asked if there was a height restriction on mobile homes.
Ms. Christopherson concurred that 14 feet is the height limit.
Senator Adler answered a question posed earlier by Chairman O'Donnell by stating the Governor's veto probably had something to do with the safety concerns.
Chairman O'Donnell asked why he voted to support the Governor's veto in the last session.
Senator Adler responded "I knew I had the bill in the process, and it was my intention to try and make my argument this session as to why I thought this was a good policy." He stated this bill would provide for low cost, high quality, housing.
Chairman O'Donnell suggested Senator Adler meet with the Governor before the bill leaves committee so that time is not wasted if the Governor is going to veto the bill.
Senator Neal asked why the NDOT would make exceptions for homes larger then the allowance to have special permits to travel in on the low-boy.
Mr. Hill responded he has legal authorization to admit loads up to 24 feet wide on a low-boy.
Ms. Christopherson stated the NDOT allows the larger loads to travel on a low-boy because the low-boy has eight axles as opposed to the mobile home which has only two.
Mr. Hill stated when a manufactured home is placed on a low-boy, it is off the ground by quite a distance. He stated, due to the height, the manufactured home would not hit the guide posts on the roads.
Senator Neal stated he did not understand the necessity of requiring a low-boy to haul large loads as far as safety. Senator Neal questioned the safety difference between having or not having a low-boy.
Mr. Hill responded it would be more expensive for a mobile home moving company to close roads which would occur if the mobile home was not on a flatbed. It would also be more dangerous because the trailer, by itself, would need 18 feet of clearance.
Senator Brown commented that the people in rural areas would not be able to purchase the larger homes.
Mr. Hill concurred.
Senator Hickey asked how many permits for wide loads were granted last year.
Ms. Christopherson guessed about 16 were granted, because they were hardship cases. She stated others were turned down.
Senator Jacobsen asked in what area of the state were the permits granted and if there were any other way the homes could be transported.
Ms. Christopherson answered "mostly in the Elko area." She stated the NDOT does allow two or three 12 foot wide homes to be transported, but is not sure if the double or triple wide homes would cost more.
Kimberly Bennion, Nevada Division of the California State Automobile Association (CSAA) testified against the bill. She said she did not believe the roadways should be shut down to transport the homes. She suggested there could be traffic hazards in the access needed for the large loads to enter the interstates. She stated she is very concerned about head on collisions and other safety problems.
Senator Jacobsen asked what California's width limit was.
Ms. Bennion answered, 14 feet wide. She stated the bill to allow 16 foot widths had been killed in their legislature.
Senator Jacobsen asked about air-lifting of homes.
Ms. Bennion stated her concern was on the roads and she did not have information regarding air-lifting.
Chairman O'Donnell closed the hearing on S.B. 373.
There being no further business, Chairman O'Donnell adjourned the meeting 2:15 p.m.
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:
Melanie Rosenberg,
Committee Secretary
APPROVED BY:
Senator William R. O'Donnell, Chairman
DATE:
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Senate Committee on Transportation
April 20, 1993
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