(1) A person wishing to pay the per-mile road usage charge imposed under ORS § 319.885 must apply to the Department of Transportation on a form prescribed by the department.

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(2) The department shall approve a valid and complete application submitted under this section if:

(a) The applicant has applied for registration or is the registered owner or lessee of a motor vehicle;

(b) The motor vehicle is equipped with a method selected pursuant to ORS § 319.900 for collecting and reporting the metered use by the motor vehicle of the highways in Oregon;

(c) The motor vehicle is classified as a passenger vehicle by the department; and

(d) The vehicle has a rating of at least 20 miles per gallon, such rating to be established by the department.

(3) An electric vehicle or a vehicle with a rating of 40 miles per gallon or greater for which an application has been submitted or approved under this section is not subject to the additional amount of registration fees imposed under ORS § 803.422.

(4) Approval of an application under this section subjects the applicant to the requirements of ORS § 319.920 until the person ends the person’s voluntary participation in the road usage charge program in the manner required under subsection (5) of this section.

(5) A person may end the person’s voluntary participation in the road usage charge program at any time by notifying the department, returning any emblem issued under ORS § 319.945 to the department and paying any outstanding amount of road usage charge for metered use by the person’s subject vehicle.

(6)(a) This subsection applies to a person whose subject vehicle is described in subsection (3) of this section and:

(A) Who ends voluntary participation in the per-mile road usage charge program with respect to the subject vehicle;

(B) Whose application is not approved under this section; or

(C) Whose subject vehicle has been removed from the per-mile road usage charge program.

(b) In addition to any amount due under subsection (5) of this section, the department may collect an additional amount equal to the registration fees that would otherwise have been due with respect to the subject vehicle for the current registration period under ORS § 803.422 or a portion of the fees.

(c) The department shall establish by rule the circumstances in which a person described in paragraph (a)(C) of this subsection is required to pay an additional amount under paragraph (b) of this subsection.

(d) The department may deny registration for the subject vehicle until the additional amount imposed under paragraph (b) of this subsection has been paid.

(7) The Department of Transportation shall consult with vehicle dealers that sell passenger vehicles to determine the most effective methods, at the point of sale, to encourage participation in the per-mile road usage charge program. [2013 c.781 § 4; 2015 c.716 § 11; 2017 c.750 § 118c; 2019 c.428 § 1; subsection (7) of 2019 Edition enacted as 2019 c.428 § 10; 2021 c.630 § 93]

Section 2, chapter 428, Oregon Laws 2019, provides:

(1)(a) The amendments to ORS § 319.890 (2) and (3) by section 1 of this 2019 Act apply to applications for participation in the per-mile road usage charge program submitted on or after the operative date of this 2019 Act [January 1, 2020].

(b) Notwithstanding the amendments to ORS § 319.890 (2)(d) by section 1 of this 2019 Act and the date specified in subsection (1) of this section, a subject vehicle with a rating of less than 20 miles per gallon that is approved for the per-mile road usage charge program before the date specified in subsection (1) of this section may remain in the program on and after the date specified in subsection (1) of this section.

(2) The amendments to ORS § 319.890 (6) by section 1 of this 2019 Act apply to a person that ends the person’s voluntary participation in the per-mile road usage charge program on or after the operative date of this 2019 Act. [2019 c.428 § 2]

See note under 319.883.