(1) The Department of Public Safety, hereinafter referred to in this section as “department,” in cooperation with the Commissioner of Insurance and the Department of Revenue, shall establish an accessible common carrier-based motor vehicle insurance verification system to verify the compliance of a motor vehicle with motor vehicle liability policy requirements under the Mississippi Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Law.

(2) The department, in cooperation with the Department of Revenue if applicable, may contract with a private vendor or vendors to establish and maintain the system.

(3) The system must:

(a) Send requests to insurers for verification of motor vehicle liability insurance using electronic services established by the insurers through the Internet, World Wide Web, or a similar proprietary or common carrier electronic system in compliance with the specifications and standards of the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration and other applicable industry standards;

(b) Include appropriate provisions to secure its data against unauthorized access and to maintain a record of all requests and responses;

(c) Be accessible, without fee, to authorized personnel of the department, the courts, law enforcement personnel, and other entities authorized by the department under the provisions of Section 63-16-7;

(d) Be able to interface with existing department systems;

(e) Be able to be accessed by authorized users via a secure web browser;

(f) Not more often than every thirty (30) days, receive insurance information from insurers under specifications and standards set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection or other data file formats as approved by the department to identify motor vehicle insurance policy information; however, no insurer shall be required to provide information in a format other than those set forth by the Insurance Industry Committee on Motor Vehicle Administration “Insurance Data Transfer Guide,” as amended;

(g) Provide a means by which low-volume insurers that are unable to deploy an online interface with the system can report insurance policy data to the department or their designee for inclusion in the system;

(h) Provide a means to track separately or distinguish motor vehicles that are subject to a certificate of insurance under Section 63-15-39 or 63-15-41, a certificate of self-insurance under Section 63-15-53, a bond under Section 63-15-49, or a certificate of deposit of money or securities under Section 63-15-51;

(i) Distinguish motor vehicles that are exempt from the provisions of this chapter;

(j) Be available twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week, subject to reasonable allowances for scheduled maintenance or temporary system failures, to verify the insurance status of any motor vehicle in a manner prescribed by the department; and

(k) Be installed and operational not later than March 1, 2016, followed by an appropriate testing period of not less than six (6) months.

(4) Every insurer shall cooperate with the department and the Insurance Department in establishing and maintaining the system and shall provide motor vehicle liability policy status and information to verify liability coverage for a motor vehicle insured by that company that is registered in this state.