61-3-721. Proportional registration of motor fleet vehicles, registration periods, application, fee formula, and payment — permanent registration of trailer and semitrailer fleets — transfer of ownership — transfer of license plates. (1) An owner of one or more fleets may register and license each fleet for operation in this state by filing an application with the department of transportation. The application must contain the information pertinent to motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, or pole trailer registration that is required by the department of transportation. If an electronic record of title has not been created for or a certificate of title issued for an apportionable vehicle in the fleet, the department of transportation, as an authorized agent of the department of justice, may also process the application for certificate of title for the vehicle as provided in 61-3-203 and 61-3-217.

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Terms Used In Montana Code 61-3-721

  • Authorized agent: means a person who has executed a written agreement with the department and is specifically authorized by the department to electronically access and update the department's motor vehicle titling, registration, or driver records, using an approved automated interface, for specific functions or purposes on behalf of a third party. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Certificate of title: means the paper record issued by the department or by the appropriate agency of another jurisdiction that establishes a verifiable record of ownership between an identified person or persons and the motor vehicle specifically described in the record and that provides notice of a perfected security interest in the motor vehicle. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Department: means the department of justice acting directly or through its duly authorized officers or agents. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Motor vehicle: means :

    (i)a vehicle propelled by its own power and designed or used to transport persons or property on the highways of the state;

    (ii)a quadricycle if it is equipped for use on the highways as prescribed in chapter 9; or

    (iii)a golf cart only if it is equipped for use on the highways as prescribed in chapter 9 and is operated pursuant to 61-8-391 or by a person with a low-speed restricted driver's license. See Montana Code 61-1-101

  • Owner: means each person who holds the legal title to a vehicle. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Pole trailer: means a vehicle without power designed to be drawn by another vehicle and attached to the towing vehicle by means of a reach or pole or by being boomed or otherwise secured to the towing vehicle and ordinarily used for transporting long or irregularly shaped loads such as poles, pipes, or structural members capable generally of sustaining themselves as beams between the supporting connections. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See Montana Code 1-1-202
  • register: means the act or process of creating an electronic record, maintained by the department, of the assignment of a license plate or a set of license plates to and the issuance of a registration decal for a specific vehicle, the ownership of which has been established or is presumed in department records. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Semitrailer: means a vehicle, with or without motive power, other than a pole trailer, designed for carrying property and for being drawn by a motor vehicle and constructed so that some part of its weight and that of its load rests on or is carried by another vehicle. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
  • Trailer: means a vehicle, with or without motive power, other than a pole trailer, designed for carrying property and for being drawn by a motor vehicle and constructed so that no part of its weight rests on the towing vehicle. See Montana Code 61-1-101
  • Vehicle: means a device in, on, or by which any person or property may be transported or drawn on a public highway, except devices moved by animal power or used exclusively on stationary rails or tracks. See Montana Code 61-1-101

(2)Except as provided in 61-3-318(1) and subsection (6) of this section, each fleet subject to the provisions of 61-3-711 through 61-3-733 must be registered for an annual registration period based upon the date that the fleet is first registered in this state.

(3)There are four annual registration periods, each of which begins on the first day of a calendar quarter. As used in this subsection, “calendar quarter” means the period of 3 consecutive months ending March 31, June 30, September 30, or December 31. The periods are:

(a)January 1 through March 31 1st period
(b)April 1 through June 30 2nd period
(c)July 1 through September 30 3rd period
(d)October 1 through December 31 4th period