§ 43-4-808 — Toll highways - special provisions - limitations

Colorado § 43-4-808

• Jurisdiction: Colorado
• Title 43: Transportation
• Art.: Financing

Text

(1) The
transportation enterprise or any partner of the enterprise operating surface
transportation infrastructure that is a toll highway under the terms of a public-private partnership shall, in operating the toll highway:

(a) Ensure unrestricted access by all vehicles to the toll highway and shall
not require that a particular class of vehicles travel upon the toll highway; except
that the enterprise or its partner may designate one or more highway lanes for high-occupancy vehicle use only and may restrict access to vehicles carrying hazardous
materials or other vehicles to the extent necessary to protect the health and safety
of the public; and

(b) Allow any public transportation vehicle to travel on the toll highway
without paying a user fee.

(2) (a) The traffic laws of this state, and those of any municipality through
which a toll highway passes, and the transportation enterprise's regulations
regarding toll collection and enforcement shall pertain to and govern the use of the
toll highway. State and local law enforcement authorities are authorized to enter
into traffic and toll enforcement agreements with the transportation enterprise.
Any moneys received by a state law enforcement authority pursuant to a toll
enforcement agreement shall be subject to annual appropriations by the general
assembly to the law enforcement authority for the purpose of performing its duties
pursuant to the agreement.

(b) The transportation enterprise may adopt, by resolution of the
transportation enterprise board, rules pertaining to the enforcement of toll
collection and providing a civil penalty for toll evasion. The civil penalty established
by the transportation enterprise for any toll evasion shall be not less than ten
dollars nor more than two hundred fifty dollars in addition to any costs imposed by
a court. The transportation enterprise may use state-of-the-art technology,
including, but not limited to, automatic vehicle identification photography, to aid in
the collection of tolls and enforcement of toll violations. The use of state-of-the-art
technology to aid in enforcement of toll violations shall be governed solely by this
section.

(c) (I) Any person who evades a toll established by the transportation
enterprise shall be subject to the civil penalty established by the enterprise for toll
evasion. Any peace officer as described in section 16-2.5-101, C.R.S., shall have the
authority to issue civil penalty assessments, or municipal summons and complaints
if authorized pursuant to a municipal ordinance, for toll evasion.

(II) At any time that a person is cited for toll evasion, the person operating
the motor vehicle involved shall be given either a notice in the form of a civil penalty
assessment notice or a municipal summons and complaint.

(III) If a civil penalty assessment notice is issued, the notice shall be tendered
by a peace officer as described in section 16-2.5-101, C.R.S., and shall contain the
name and address of the person operating the motor vehicle involved, the license
number of the motor vehicle, the person's driver's license number, the nature of the
violation, the amount of the penalty prescribed for the violation, the date of the
notice, a place for the person to execute a signed acknowledgment of the person's
receipt of the civil penalty assessment notice, a place for the person to execute a
signed acknowledgment of liability for the cited violation, and such other
information as may be required by law to constitute the notice as a complaint to
appear for adjudication of a toll evasion pursuant to this section if the prescribed
toll, fee, or civil penalty are not paid within twenty days. Every cited person shall
execute the signed acknowledgment of the person's receipt of the civil penalty
assessment notice.

(IV) The acknowledgment of liability shall be executed at the time the person
cited pays the prescribed penalty. The person cited shall pay the toll, fee, or civil
penalty authorized by the transportation enterprise at the office of the enterprise or
the enterprise's collection designee either in person or by postmarking the payment
within twenty days of the notice. If the person cited does not pay the prescribed
toll, fee, or civil penalty within twenty days of the notice, the civil penalty
assessment notice shall constitute a complaint to appear for adjudication of a toll
evasion pursuant to this section, and the person cited shall, within the time
specified in the civil penalty assessment notice, file an answer to this complaint in
the manner specified in the notice.

(V) If a municipal summons and complaint is issued, the adjudication of the
violation shall be conducted and the format of the summons and complaint shall be
determined pursuant to the terms of the municipal ordinance authorizing issuance
of the summons and complaint. In no case shall the penalty upon conviction for
violation of a municipal ordinance for toll evasion exceed the limit established in
paragraph (b) of this subsection (2).

(d) (I) The respective courts of the municipalities, counties, and cities and
counties shall have jurisdiction to try all cases arising under municipal ordinances
and state laws governing the use of a toll highway and arising under the toll evasion
civil penalty rules enacted by the transportation enterprise. Venue for any such
case shall be in the municipality, county, or city and county where the alleged
violation of a municipal ordinance, state law, or rule of the transportation enterprise
occurred.

(II) At the request of the judicial department, the transportation enterprise
shall consider establishing an administrative toll enforcement process and may, by
resolution, adopt rules creating such a process. The rules pertaining to the
administrative enforcement of toll evasion shall require notice to the person cited
for toll evasion and provide to the person an opportunity to appear at an open
hearing conducted by an impartial hearing officer and a right to appeal the final
administrative determination of toll evasion to the county court for the county in
which the violation occurred.

(III) If the transportation enterprise establishes an administrative toll
enforcement process, no court of a municipality, county, or city and county shall
have jurisdiction to hear toll evasion cases arising on a toll highway operated by the
enterprise.

(IV) A toll evasion case may be adjudicated by an impartial hearing officer in
an administrative hearing conducted pursuant to this section and the rules
promulgated by the transportation enterprise. The hearing officer may be an
administrative law judge employed by the state or an independent contractor of the
transportation enterprise. The contract for an independent contractor shall grant to
the hearing officer the same degree of independence granted to an administrative
law judge employed by the state. The transportation enterprise may enter into
contracts pursuant to section 29-1-203, C.R.S., for joint adjudication of toll evasion
cases pursuant to this section.

(V) The transportation enterprise may file a certified copy of an order
imposing a toll, fee, and civil penalty that is entered by the hearing officer in an
adjudication of a toll evasion with the clerk of the county court in the county in
which the violation occurred at any time after the order is entered. The clerk shall
record the order in the judgment book of the court and enter it in the judgment
docket. The order shall thenceforth have the effect of a judgment of the county
court, and execution may issue on the order out of the court as in other cases.

(VI) An administrative adjudication of a toll evasion by the transportation
enterprise is subject to judicial review. The administrative adjudication may be
appealed as to matters of law and fact to the county court for the county in which
the violation occurred. The appeal shall be a de novo hearing.

(VII) Notwithstanding the specific remedies provided by this section, the
transportation enterprise shall have every legal remedy available to enforce unpaid
tolls and fees as debts owed to the enterprise.

(e) The aggregate amount of penalties, exclusive of court costs, collected as
a result of civil penalties imposed pursuant to rules adopted as authorized in
paragraph (b) of this subsection (2) shall be remitted to the transportation
enterprise and shall be applied by the enterprise to defray the costs and expenses
of enforcing the laws of the state and the regulations of the enterprise. If a
municipal summons or complaint is issued, the aggregate penalty shall be
apportioned pursuant to the terms of any enforcement agreement.

(f) (I) In addition to the penalty assessment procedure provided for in
paragraph (c) of this subsection (2), where an instance of toll evasion is evidenced
by automatic vehicle identification photography or other technology not involving a
peace officer, a civil penalty assessment notice may be issued and sent by first-class mail, or by any mail delivery service offered by an entity other than the United
States postal service that is equivalent to or superior to first-class mail with
respect to delivery speed, reliability, and price, by the transportation enterprise to
the registered owner of the motor vehicle involved. The notice shall contain the
name and address of the registered owner of the vehicle involved, the license
number of the vehicle involved, the date of the notice, the date, time, and location
of the violation, the amount of the penalty prescribed for the violation, a place for
such person to execute a signed acknowledgment of liability for the cited violation,
and such other information as may be required by law to constitute the notice as a
complaint to appear for adjudication of a toll evasion civil penalty assessment.
Except as otherwise provided in subparagraphs (II) and (III) of this paragraph (f), the
registered owner of the vehicle involved in a toll evasion shall be presumed liable
for the toll, fee, or civil penalty imposed by the transportation enterprise. If the
registered owner of the vehicle does not pay the prescribed toll, fee, or civil penalty
within thirty days of the date of the civil penalty assessment notice, the notice shall
constitute a complaint to appear for adjudication of a toll evasion in court or in an
administrative toll enforcement proceeding, and the registered owner of the vehicle
shall, within the time specified in the notice, file an answer to the complaint in the
manner specified in the notice. If the registered owner of the vehicle fails to pay in
full the outstanding toll, fee, or civil penalty as set forth in the notice or to appear
and answer the complaint and request a hearing as specified in the notice, a final
order of liability shall be entered against the registered owner of the vehicle for the
purposes of enabling the registered owner to appeal pursuant to subparagraph (VI)
of paragraph (d) of this subsection (2) and allowing the transportation enterprise to
proceed to judgment pursuant to subparagraph (V) of paragraph (d) of this
subsection (2).

(II) In addition to any other liability provided for in this section, the owner of a
motor vehicle who is engaged in the business of leasing or renting motor vehicles is
liable for payment of a toll evasion violation civil penalty; except that, at the
discretion of such owner:

(A) The owner may obtain payment for a toll evasion violation civil penalty
from the person or company who leased or rented the vehicle at the time of the toll
evasion through a credit or debit card payment and forward the payment to the
transportation enterprise; or

(B) The owner may seek to avoid liability for a toll evasion violation civil
penalty if the owner of the leased or rented motor vehicle can furnish sufficient
evidence that, at the time of the toll evasion violation, the vehicle was leased or
rented to another person. To avoid liability for payment, the owner of the motor
vehicle shall, within thirty days after receipt of the notification of the toll evasion
violation, furnish to the transportation enterprise an affidavit containing the name,
address, and state driver's license number of the person or company who leased or
rented the vehicle. As a condition to avoid liability for payment of a toll evasion
violation civil penalty, any person or company who leases or rents motor vehicles to
a person shall include a notice in the leasing or rental agreement stating that,
pursuant to the requirements of this section, the person renting or leasing the
vehicle is liable for payment of a toll evasion violation civil penalty incurred on or
after the date the person renting or leasing the vehicle takes possession of the
motor vehicle. The notice shall inform the person renting or leasing the vehicle that
the person's name, address, and state driver's license number shall be furnished to
the transportation enterprise when a toll evasion violation civil penalty is incurred
during the term of the lease or rental agreement.

(III) The registered owner of a vehicle involved in a toll evasion violation may
rebut the presumption of liability for the violation by proving by a preponderance of
the evidence that:

(A) The owner sold or otherwise transferred ownership of the vehicle to
another person before the date of the violation as evidenced by a bill of sale or
similar document; or

(B) The owner did not have custody and control of the vehicle at the time of
the violation due to theft as evidenced by a report to a law enforcement agency.

(IV) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2010, (SB 10-016), ch. 150, p. 519, � 2,
effective April 21, 2010.)

(g) A court with jurisdiction in a toll evasion case pursuant to subparagraph
(I) of paragraph (d) of this subsection (2) or the transportation enterprise, if it has
jurisdiction in a toll evasion case pursuant to subparagraph (II) of paragraph (d) of
this subsection (2), may report to the department of revenue any outstanding
judgment or warrant or any failure to pay the toll, fee, or civil penalty for any toll
evasion. Upon receipt of a certified report from a court or the transportation
enterprise stating that the owner of a registered vehicle has failed to pay a toll, fee,
or civil penalty resulting from a final order entered by the enterprise, the
department shall not renew the registration of the vehicle until the toll, fee, and
civil penalty are paid in full. The transportation enterprise shall contract with and
compensate a vendor approved by the department for the direct costs associated
with the nonrenewal of a vehicle registration pursuant to this paragraph (g). The
department has no authority to assess any points against a license under section
42-2-127, C.R.S., upon entry of a conviction or judgment for any toll evasion.

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law and subject to the
requirements of section 43-4-806 (8) and any limitations set forth in the state
constitution or in federal law, the transportation enterprise may:

(a) Impose user fees on a highway segment or highway lanes that have
previously served vehicular traffic on a user fee-free basis if:

(I) It has obtained any required federal approval for the user fees; and

(II) It has obtained the approval of every local government that includes
territory in which all or any portion of the highway segment or highway lanes upon
which the user fee is to be imposed pass or that will otherwise be substantially
impacted by the imposition of the user fees on the highway segment or highway
lanes;

(b) Incorporate congestion management and congestion pricing into its
schedule of user fees for any highway or highway system; and

(c) Authorize the investment of highway-derived user fee revenues for cost-effective multimodal transportation projects that promote mobility, reductions in
emissions of greenhouse gases, and energy efficiency.

(4) When determining whether to undertake and complete a surface
transportation infrastructure project to be funded, in whole or in part, through the
imposition of any user fee, the transportation enterprise shall consider whether the
completion of the project will help to reconnect or reintegrate any local
government or other community that has been disconnected or divided by existing
transportation infrastructure.

(5) Before imposing a user fee on a highway segment or highway lanes that
have previously served vehicular traffic on a toll-free basis, the transportation
enterprise shall prepare or cause to be prepared a local air quality impact
statement and a local community traffic safety assessment that specifically take
into account any diversion of vehicular traffic from the highway segment or
highway lanes onto other highways, roads, or streets that is expected to result from
the imposition of the user fee.

Legislative History

Source: L. 2009: Entire part R&RE, (SB 09-108), ch. 5, p. 40, � 1, effective March 2. L. 2010: (2)(d)(VI), (2)(f)(I), and (2)(f)(IV) amended, (SB 10-016), ch. 150, p. 519, � 2, effective April 21.