389.612.  Grade crossing safety account created — fee charged, amount — who must pay — purpose and use of fund — transfer to state road fund, when. — 1.  The owner of a motor vehicle shall pay a railroad crossing safety fee of twenty-five cents when such person registers or renews the registration of a motor vehicle.  All revenue collected by the director of revenue pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the state highways and transportation department fund in an account to be known as the "Grade Crossing Safety Account", which is hereby created.

  2.  Funds from the grade crossing safety account shall be used for installation, construction or reconstruction of automatic signals or other safety devices or other safety improvements at crossings of railroads and public roads, streets or highways.  That portion of the costs proportioned to the state, county, municipality or other public authority in interest, for installation, construction or reconstruction of automatic signals or other safety devices or other safety improvements at crossings of railroads and public roads, streets or highways which the division of motor carrier and railroad safety orders pursuant to section 389.610 shall be paid out of the grade crossing safety account, except that when any part of such costs can be paid from funds available under any federal program or the Federal-Aid Highway Act such part shall not be paid from the grade crossing safety account.  No more than ninety percent of the cost of improving any grade crossing shall be paid out of the grade crossing safety account.  The division shall, in cooperation with other governmental agencies of the state, determine if any portion of the cost can be paid from funds available pursuant to any federal program or the Federal-Aid Highway Act.  The division may order the payment of the amount determined pursuant to section 389.610 to the person, firm, or corporation entitled thereto from the grade crossing safety account.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, the division of motor carrier and railroad safety within the department of economic development may expend annually out of the grade crossing safety account an amount not greater than one hundred thousand dollars of the total annual receipts deposited in the state treasury to the credit of such account to pay for administrative expenses of the division incurred in carrying out the division's railroad grade crossing closure program.  The provisions of this section shall not limit or enlarge the division's expenditures out of the grade crossing safety account for any other purposes or the division's expenditures out of any other account or fund.

  3.  Notwithstanding the provisions of section 33.080 to the contrary, moneys in the grade crossing safety account shall not be transferred and placed to the credit of the state road fund until the amount in the account at the end of the biennium exceeds two times the amount encumbered from the account to carry out the purposes of this section in the preceding fiscal year.  The amount, if any, in the account which shall be transferred to the credit of the state road fund shall be that amount in the account which exceeds two times the amount encumbered from the account to carry out the purposes of this section in the preceding fiscal year.