TO:  Manufacturers, Distributors, and Mississippi Dealers      

FROM:  Ben Ford, Legislative Chairman  

DATE:  February15, 2005

SUBJECT:  Mississippi Legislation HB 734 and HB 10

As you are aware we have been working for the past year with officials from           Mississippi to develop legislation that would help us address the annual proposals             that relate to the automotive window film laws. We have continued our contacts             during the initial weeks of the legislative session and recently identified amended      language to House Bill 734 that substantively modifies the language that had been developed.   

 The International Window Film Association (IWFA) has retained the services of a     lobbyist in Mississippi to facilitate our efforts to provide information to the appro-           priate committees and keep our Legislative Consultant advised of developments      that would result in additional actions by our Association. 

House Bill No. 734

Note:  IWFA’s Legislative Consultant discussed the inclusion of a 6% tolerance                and an exemption for Multipurpose Passenger Vehicles (MPVs) in an effort to            improve enforcement  practices.  Neither provision was included, which could                  result in further enforcement  problems and confusion among consumers,                 installers and the inspection stations.

The proposed legislation would now require the following:

(1) Makes it illegal after July 1, 2006 to operate a vehicle that is registered                    in Mississippi with any window darkened or tinted unless each               window has a label certifying the window meets the visible light    transmittance and light reflectance standards outlined in the code.

(2) Medical exemptions are continued but only by licensed physicians and       not optometrists, which make up a significant portion of medical                  problems associated with the need for additional protection. 

(3)  The new legislation would require the Department of Public Safety to             issue labels to the official motor vehicle inspection stations for                affixing to every window on a motor vehicle. 

(4)  The inspection stations would be required to determine that the                  window complies with the luminous reflectance and light trans-             mittance requirements.  It is our understanding there have been no  provisions for obtaining any reflectance meters to provide accurate measurements. 

(5)  There will be a charge of $ 5.00 per vehicle to test each vehicle.  The                  fee will be divided between the inspection station ($2.00) and the      Department of Public Safety ($3.00).  The funds allocated to Public            Safety will transfer $2.00 to the General Fund.

(6)  There is still a statutory requirement for the Department of Public                  Safety to conduct a public awareness campaign that has not               previously been implemented.

The legislation does remove the current requirement for the use of cards to test transmittance.

It should be noted that including window film in the state inspection program has         created a significant number of problems in states adopting this approach

The  inspection fee is also a concern as our customers will be required to pay an        additional fee that is not only used for an offset of costs to inspection stations but      provide additional funds to the state to use in any way they desire.  This is         discriminatory as no other after market products, even those that may be illegal to          install, are assessed a fee above the normal inspection costs.

House Bill 1026

Representative Smith has introduced a similar measure but has proposed a $2.00               fee for the payment of Highway Patrol overtime and the $5.00 fee for the Inspection Stations.  This is a $7.00 fee on our customers. 

The legislation, as proposed, should be strongly opposed.

 It is suggested all members contact legislative representatives in the House and          Senate Transportation Committees and express your concerns with the proposed legislation.  This is a critical issue for the installers, distributors, manufacturers,            and customers in Mississippi and requires our immediate attention.