Maine Canceling Delica Registration
- Thread starter Crankshaft Culture
- Start date
It was signed into law June 15th; I haven't seen anything in the documentation that gives it a sept effectivity date?
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State of Maine law is that for bills that do not contain an effective date in the body, the effective date is 90 days after the session in which it was signed has ended. I find no effective date in the document (I should probably look one more time...), making it 90 days.
So the letters should have said 3 months instead of 3 weeks? It's not much, but I think it's a fairly easy win... you cannot enforce a law that is not in effect.
I'm not sure, and that is why I am not able to be definitive. Maybe someone else more educated in the lawmaking process can chime in? I thought one of the messages from Bruce said something about a September date but cannot seem to find it. But I'm sure they would just say that regardless of law, they were improperly registered in the first place and therefore cannot be on the road. I am getting pretty good at guessing their moving goalposts right about now.
I think the bigger question is why were Delica owners the only people to receive the letters on 06/15?
My guess is they knew the omnibus bill was coming up with a bunch of other vehicle related language and definition tweaks, this kei-class vehicle issue came up in April and they threw that change in at the last minute. Now they’re backpedaling on misunderstanding the Delica as a kei-class vehicle (which came from the recently retired BMV Director “Steve” in his email reply to my forwarded email on 05/28) but are still trying to fall back on the new “off-road” language.
Cheers,
C
My guess is they knew the omnibus bill was coming up with a bunch of other vehicle related language and definition tweaks, this kei-class vehicle issue came up in April and they threw that change in at the last minute. Now they’re backpedaling on misunderstanding the Delica as a kei-class vehicle (which came from the recently retired BMV Director “Steve” in his email reply to my forwarded email on 05/28) but are still trying to fall back on the new “off-road” language.
Cheers,
C
Here is the State Police FOAA material. Most all of it is stuff we have seen already, either from you all sharing your emails or the previous FOAA docs. Still, here it is, unredacted and everything.
https://1drv.ms/b/s!AgHrBgRLy6oQnFU2Yj_Ym1_H70UN
https://1drv.ms/b/s!AgHrBgRLy6oQnFU2Yj_Ym1_H70UN
This is interesting. The law actually states 90 days after the adjournment of the session in which it passed. Well, I'll be damned in the 130th special session didn't adjourn until 19JUL2021, making the effective date of non-emergency laws 18OCT2021. I assume the anti-Delica law is not emergency. Anyone know how to check that? I assume it would say it in the bill, but I don't see anything of the sort.
I think someone needs to point this out/run with it...
As has been mentioned; having to replace your primary vehicle in 3 weeks time is pretty unreasonable... especially when you can't as easily sell it because the (local) value of the vehicle has just been destroyed. It seems the Maine constitution has a more reasonable buffer/transition built into it as law; but that has been ignored by some overzealous people in the BMV (or they didn't know).
There is no such thing as "regardless of the law"... if you had to rewrite the law in order to exclude vehicles imported under the 25yr exemption (no FMVSS), then they were not originally registered "improperly."
They can't even really say that kei class vehicles were designed as off-road vehicles... they were specifically designed/intended to be on-road vehicles in Japanese cities to help combat congestion. The only thing they can reasonably say (in regards to the Delica) is that it is of ***"unknown safety;" and they have no capabilities to do/require even a minimum safety inspection (as many other states do). I.e. because we can't/don't test, FMVSS (or equivalent) is required for all vehicles.
*** I would not recommend referencing the ANCAP safety testing/rating.
They're going to have to come take my plates. Did you notice at one point in the emails I got from them they said they were contemplating sending agents out to speak to all the Letter holders? I would have to go back and find where they mentioned that...
Crankshaft Culture
Active Member
Following this thread. My wife and I are looking to buy a Defender and right before we pulled the trigger on a Rest of World (ROW) this issue came up and scared us away. Sorry you guys have to be the guinea pigs, hoping this works out so the wife and I can get a 40k dollar ROW and not have to drop 90-100k on an NAS. At least us Landy guys have an option, albeit an expensive one, for getting a Defender with the FMVSS sticker...
I'm also really interested in what this means for cars older than 1969 with no FMVSS sticker or federalized vehicles with foreign VIN's that have FMVSS stickers from a registered importer...
I'm also really interested in what this means for cars older than 1969 with no FMVSS sticker or federalized vehicles with foreign VIN's that have FMVSS stickers from a registered importer...
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Sputnik
Well-Known Member
Nothing new in the article, but Jalopnik just picked up the story.
jalopnik.com
Maine Is Cancelling The Registrations Of Imported JDM Cars
Maine is turning fun, capable vehicles into lawn ornaments.
jalopnik.com