Provides relative to oversight of commercial vehicle parking. (8/1/26)

Senate Bill 133 amends four provisions of Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 32 governing commercial vehicles and highway safety to consolidate regulatory authority over autonomous and remote-operated vehicles. The bill modifies R.S. 32:296(A) to expand the prohibition on vehicles left on highway shoulders to include attended vehicles in addition to unattended vehicles. More significantly, the bill transfers regulatory jurisdiction over autonomous commercial motor vehicles and automated driving systems from the Department of Transportation and Development to the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of state police. This jurisdictional transfer applies to R.S. 32:400.2(B), which designates the regulatory agency as having sole and exclusive authority over such vehicles; R.S. 32:400.3(C), which addresses the requirement for written certification before operating autonomous vehicles without a conventional driver; and R.S. 32:400.7(B), which addresses written certification requirements for commercial vehicles equipped with teleoperation systems. The bill retains all existing substantive requirements for vehicle certification and safety compliance but redirects administrative oversight to the state police.

The practical effect of this legislation is to shift responsibility for regulating the autonomous and remote-operated commercial vehicle industry from a transportation agency to a law enforcement agency. Companies developing, testing, or operating autonomous commercial vehicles and remote-operated vehicles will now submit certification statements to the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of state police rather than to the Department of Transportation and Development. The modification to R.S. 32:296(A) expands the scope of parking restrictions on highway shoulders to encompass both attended and unattended vehicles, potentially affecting commercial vehicle operators who may currently park attended vehicles on highway shoulders during operations such as loading, unloading, or maintenance stops. Vehicle owners, remote drivers, and remote driver employers must comply with new procedural requirements by submitting documentation to the state police instead of DOTD before commencing operations of autonomous or teleoperated commercial vehicles.

The bill operates within the existing statutory framework governing motor vehicle regulation in Louisiana Title 32. The referenced sections are part of Part 10 of Chapter 4, which comprehensively addresses autonomous and teleoperated commercial vehicles, establishing safety standards, operational requirements, and insurance provisions. The transfer of jurisdiction reflects a policy decision to position law enforcement oversight as the primary regulatory framework for these emerging technologies rather than traditional transportation infrastructure oversight. This change aligns enforcement and compliance authority with the Department of Public Safety and Corrections' existing responsibilities for vehicle inspections and roadway safety enforcement under Louisiana law.