Minitruck state laws
November 2008
Typical minitruck vs. typical small truck
Minitrucks are sold as off-road vehicles for farms and construction sites and are far smaller than conventional small trucks sold for on-the-road use. These vehicles go by many names, including Japanese minitruck, Kei truck, microtruck, and utility transportation vehicle. Minitrucks have the capacity to reach top speeds of 55 mph or more, but many are sold with governors to limit their speed to 25 mph.
Federal safety standards don't apply to minitrucks because they are sold as off-road vehicles, even though they are permitted on public roads in some states. 10 states (Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming) now allow minitrucks on specific portions of public roads. In Illinois and Missouri, minitrucks are allowed only by local ordinance. 3 states (Illinois, Kansas, and Tennessee) require minitrucks to comply with federal safety standards for low-speed vehicles.
The table below describes state laws that specifically permit the use of minitrucks on public roads. In some states, minitrucks also may fall under other state laws, such as those on off-road vehicles, which may permit limited uses of mintrucks on public roads.
| Alabama |
no state law |
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| Alaska |
no state law |
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| Arizona |
no state law |
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| Arkansas |
no state law |
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| California |
no state law |
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| Colorado |
no state law |
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| Connecticut |
no state law |
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| Delaware |
no state law |
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| District of Columbia |
no law |
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| Florida |
no state law |
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| Georgia |
no state law |
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| Hawaii |
no state law |
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|
| Idaho |
01/01/2009 |
local option
(effective 01/01/09) |
no
|
utility type vehicle (UTV)
|
| Illinois |
08/31/07 |
streets with a posted speed limit of less than 35 mph if allowed by local ordinance
|
25 mph
|
neighborhood vehicle
|
| Indiana |
no state law |
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| Iowa |
no state law |
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|
|
| Kansas |
07/01/08 |
public roads except interstate, federal or state highways; within corporate city limits if allowed under local ordinance
|
no
|
micro utility truck
|
| Kentucky |
no state law |
|
|
|
| Louisiana |
08/15/08 |
any road except interstate highways
|
no
|
mini-vehicle
|
| Maine |
no state law |
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| Maryland |
no state law |
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| Massachusetts |
no state law |
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| Michigan |
no state law |
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| Minnesota |
no state law |
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| Mississippi |
no state law |
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|
|
| Missouri |
08/14/08 |
local option
|
local option
|
utility vehicle
|
| Montana |
no state law |
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| Nebraska |
no state law |
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| Nevada |
no state law |
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| New Hampshire |
no state law |
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| New Jersey |
no state law |
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| New Mexico |
no state law |
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| New York |
no state law |
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| North Carolina |
no state law |
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|
|
| North Dakota |
08/01/07 |
any paved road except highways with a posted speed of more than 65 mph
|
55 mph
|
off-highway vehicle
|
| Ohio |
no state law |
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|
|
| Oklahoma |
11/01/08 |
any road except interstate highways
|
no
|
mini-truck
|
| Oregon |
no state law |
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| Pennsylvania |
no state law |
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| Rhode Island |
no state law |
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| South Carolina |
no state law |
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| South Dakota |
no state law |
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| Tennessee |
07/01/08 |
streets where the posted speed limit is less than 40 mph; a county or municipality may prohibit the operation of medium-speed vehicles on any road under its jurisdiction if the governing body of the county or municipality determines that such a prohibition is necessary in the interest of safety
|
35 mph
|
medium-speed vehicle
|
| Texas |
no state law |
|
|
|
| Utah |
10/01/08 |
any road except those with more than one lane in each direction; street within a county of the first class; municipality that is within a county of the first class; or municipality with a population of 7,500 or more people, and streets with a posted limit of 40 mph or more
|
35 mph
|
off-highway vehicle
|
| Vermont |
no state law |
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| Virginia |
no state law |
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| Washington |
no state law |
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| West Virginia |
no state law |
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| Wisconsin |
no state law |
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| Wyoming |
01/01/08 |
any road except interstate highways
|
if a multipurpose vehicle is incapable of achieving the maximum speed allowed on the specific highway, it shall be operated on the extreme right hand edge of the roadway
|
multipurpose vehicle
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