La. Admin. Code tit. 73, § I-105 - Registration and Licensing Requirements for Vehicles Operating in Louisiana

A. Registration Requirements for Intrastate Haulers. A vehicle is operating intrastate when it is hauling any load which both originates and terminates in Louisiana. The vehicle must be either full plated for Louisiana or apportioned for Louisiana, or must have a 48-hour temporary permit. If the vehicle is owned and operated in Louisiana, it must be licensed and titled in Louisiana.

B. Reciprocity for Interstate Haulers. Louisiana has reciprocal agreements with most other states that are not members of the International Registration Plan (IRP) to recognize each state's license plates. These vehicles, if lawfully owned and registered by a resident of one of these states, are not required to have Louisiana plates to operate interstate in Louisiana (to pass through or to only originate or only terminate loads in Louisiana). These foreign plated interstate haulers are allowed the Louisiana weight limits, if their state has lower limitations, provided that the gross vehicle weight, including the steering axle, does not exceed the amount for which the vehicle is registered in its home state. If the home state weight limits are greater than the Louisiana weight limits, then the vehicle will have to abide by the Louisiana weight limits.

C. Temporary 48-Hour Permits. Occasionally a hauler who is not licensed to operate in this state will want to operate in Louisiana. In these cases it is more advantageous for him to purchase a temporary 48-hour permit rather than full plate or apportion with Louisiana. The hauler must secure this $25 permit from the Vehicle Registration Bureau, a DOTD port-of-entry location, or a wire service. This temporary permit allows the vehicle to operate in Louisiana for a period of 48 continuous hours. Under no condition is a vehicle allowed to operate within the state (intrastate) without either having Louisiana plates, or a temporary 48-hour permit, or being apportioned for Louisiana. Temporary 48-hour permits apply to these types of vehicles:

1. those properly registered in a state which does belong to the IRP and the vehicle is not apportioned for Louisiana. A hauler in this situation must purchase a temporary 48-hour permit to operate either interstate or intrastate. The officer must check the cab card on all vehicles bearing apportioned tags for Louisiana;

2. those properly registered in a state which does not belong to the IRP but does have a reciprocal agreement with Louisiana. A hauler in this situation must purchase a temporary 48-hour permit to operate intrastate in Louisiana, if he doesn't want to purchase Louisiana plates. The reciprocity clause allows him to operate interstate without having to purchase a permit or Louisiana tags. Unless otherwise notified, consider any state that is not in the IRP as having a reciprocal agreement with Louisiana.

D. International Registration Plan. Any single motor vehicle having three or more axles, regardless of weight, or any vehicle or combination of vehicles weighing 26,000 pounds or more may be licensed under the International Registration Plan, if the home state is a member. A vehicle from a member state may operate interstate or intrastate in Louisiana if the cab card shows that the vehicle is apportioned for Louisiana. If the vehicle is not apportioned for Louisiana, the driver must obtain a temporary 48-hour permit to operate either interstate or intrastate. Officers shall check the proration registration cab card. At all times this card must accompany the vehicle for which it was issued. If this card is altered or defaced or used in any other vehicle except the one described thereon, it shall be considered null and void and the Louisiana registration license requirements shall apply. An apportioned license plate must also be displayed on the front of the vehicle, and the cab card must show the weights and the states for which the vehicle is apportioned.

E. Notes

1. Some states which soon will be coming into the IRP have pro-rate and bilateral agreements with Louisiana. Handle these situations just as you would IRP members. These vehicles will have a cab card similar to the IRP cab card.

2. Trailers. Any state's trailer license tag is to be honored, as long as the truck-tractor is properly registered and licensed.

3. Restricted Plates. We honor all states' farm, forest, and public plates, U.S. Government plates, and Texas machinery plates, as long as the vehicle is properly licensed and registered and is hauling the commodity or equipment for which the license was issued. Public and government plates do not have expiration dates, so no violations shall be written for expired public or government plates.

4. Vehicles Which Have a Higher Registration than that Required for the Commodity Being Transported. When a vehicle is registered for a class such as common carrier, forest products, etc., which has a higher registration fee tax than that required for the commodity being transported, it will be considered properly registered. Specifically, if a truck is registered in the state of Mississippi for common and contract carrier class and transports forest products, since Louisiana has an agreement with Mississippi for trucks registered for forest products, this truck should be considered properly registered to travel in Louisiana without a trip permit or being apportioned as long as he is transporting forest products. This policy is applicable to all classes of registration for vehicles registered in all states which have agreements with Louisiana to accept each other's registration in specified classes.

Notes

La. Admin. Code tit. 73, § I-105

Promulgated by the Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Highways, LR 5:29 (February 1979).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 32:2 et seq.