Legislative Watch 
LEGISLATIVE
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3/23/05-Sen. Larry Means, D-Attalla, is expected to introduce legislation that would increase liability insurance coverage for some types of trucks.
Means told The Birmingham News the measure would require that logging trucks carry the same liability insurance as those traveling from state to state.
He also plans to pursue legislation that would allow law enforcement to write citations for truck violations they did not witness, such as being obviously overloaded or carrying a load poorly strapped down.
The legislative effort is part of a campaign launched by an Alabama firm of personal injury lawyers for motorists to report trucks they feel are unsafe.
Currently, Alabama law requires that logging and other forestry product semis carry the same minimum liability as passenger vehicles, $20,000 for a single injury, $40,000 for two or more injuries and $10,000 for property damage.
Over-the-road rigs must have a minimum of $750,000 in liability coverage.
Means said his proposal to require log trucks to carry more liability insurance is intended to bring them in line with other commercial carriers. As a result, he told the newspaper “It is likely that insurance companies would require these trucks and drivers to meet higher safety and training standards in order to get coverage.”
The other proposal sought by Means is described as an effort to permit an enforcement officer to ticket or make an arrest even if the offense was not committed in the officer’s presence. An example would be if a truck’s load is too long, too heavy, or not flagged properly, an officer wouldn’t be required to wait until the driver started down the road to pull him over for breaking the law.
