Bill Text: CA AB610 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Vehicles: specialized license plates: Veterinary Medical

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-1)

Status: (Passed) 2012-04-26 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 9, Statutes of 2012. [AB610 Detail]

Download: California-2011-AB610-Introduced.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 610	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Solorio

                        FEBRUARY 16, 2011

   An act to add Section 5156.5 to the Vehicle Code, relating to
vehicles.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 610, as introduced, Solorio. Vehicles: specialized license
plates: donations.
   Under existing law, the Department of Motor Vehicles issues
environmental and other specialized license plates. The issuance of
some of those license plates is subject to additional fees. Existing
law prohibits the department from establishing a specialized license
plate program for a state agency until the department has received
not less than 7,500 applications for the plates.
   This bill would authorize a state agency, board, or commission, as
defined, to sponsor a specialized license plate program if certain
conditions are met. The bill would only require that 2,500
applications be collected and held by the sponsoring agency. The bill
would require the sponsoring agency to actively request and receive
donations from public and private entities that would be deposited
into the Specialized License Plate Fund and, upon determination by
the department that there are sufficient funds for the program,
moneys would be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to
the department for the necessary administrative costs of establishing
the specialized license plate program and, as to any remaining
moneys, for allocation to the sponsoring agency.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 5156.5 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:
   5156.5.  (a) (1) A state agency, board, or commission may apply to
the department to sponsor a specialized license plate program, and
the department shall issue specialized license plates for that
program, if the agency complies with all of the requirements of this
section. As used in this section, "agency" includes a state agency,
board, or commission.
   (2) The department shall not issue specialized license plates to
an agency for a vehicle that is exempt from the payment of
registration fees pursuant to Section 9101 or 9103.
   (b) An agency may sponsor a specialized license plate program and
the department may establish the program in the absence of 7,500 paid
applications, as would be required under subdivision (a) of Section
5156 or Section 5157, if all of the following conditions are met:
   (1) The department shall not establish a specialized license plate
program for an agency until the department has received not less
than 2,500 applications for that agency's specialized license plates.
The agency shall collect and hold applications for the plates. Once
the agency has received at least 2,500 applications, it shall submit
the applications, along with the necessary fees, to the department.
The department shall not issue a specialized license plate until the
agency has received and submitted to the department not less than
2,500 applications for the particular specialized license plate
within the time period prescribed in this section. Advance payment to
the department by the agency representing the department's estimated
or actual administrative costs associated with the issuance of a
particular specialized license plate shall not constitute compliance
with this requirement. The agency shall have 12 months, following the
date of approval of the agency's initial application to sponsor a
specialized license plate program, to receive the required number of
applications. If, after 12 months, 2,500 applications have not been
received, the agency shall immediately do either of the following:
   (A) Refund to all applicants all fees or deposits that have been
collected.
   (B) Contact the department to indicate the agency's intent to
undertake collection of additional applications and fees or deposits
for an additional period, not to exceed 12 months, in order to obtain
the minimum 2,500 applications. If the agency elects to exercise the
option under this subparagraph, it shall contact each applicant who
has submitted an application with the appropriate fees or deposits to
determine if the applicant wishes a refund of fees or deposits or
requests the continuance of the holding of the application and fees
or deposits until that time that the agency has received 2,500
applications. The agency shall refund the fees or deposits to an
applicant so requesting. The agency shall not collect and hold
applications for a period exceeding 24 months following the date of
approval of the agency's initial application to sponsor a specialized
license plate program.
   (2) The agency actively requests and receives donations for the
specialized license plate program, which may consist of donations
from public and private entities for deposit into the Specialized
License Plate Fund. Earnings generated from donations shall be
retained for the specialized license plate program authorized by this
section.
   (3) Upon determination by the department that there are sufficient
funds for the program, moneys shall be available, upon appropriation
by the Legislature, to the department for the necessary
administrative costs of establishing the specialized license plate
program.
   (c) (1) If the number of outstanding and valid specialized license
plates in a particular program provided for in this section is less
than 2,500, the department shall notify the sponsoring agency of that
fact and shall inform the agency that if that number is less than
2,500 one year from the date of that notification, the department
will no longer issue or replace those specialized license plates.
   (2) Those particular specialized license plates that were issued
prior to the discontinuation provided by paragraph (1) may continue
to be used and attached to the vehicle for which they were issued and
may be renewed, retained, or transferred pursuant to this code.
   (d) In addition to the regular fees for an original registration
or renewal of registration, the following additional fees shall be
paid for the issuance, renewal, or transfer of the specialized
license plates bearing, notwithstanding Section 5060, a full-plate
graphic design depicting a significant feature, quality, program, or
purpose of the sponsoring agency, approved by the department in
consultation with the sponsoring agency and the Department of the
California Highway Patrol:
   (1) Fifty dollars ($50) for the original issuance of the plates.
   (2) Forty dollars ($40) for a renewal of registration with the
plates.
   (3) Fifteen Dollars ($15) for transfer of the plates to another
vehicle.
   (4) Thirty-five dollars ($35) for each substitute replacement
plate.
   (e) After deducting its administrative costs under this section,
which moneys shall be available for expenditure by the department,
upon appropriation by the Legislature, the department shall deposit
the additional revenue derived from the issuance, renewal, transfer,
and substitution of the specialized license plates in the Specialized
License Plate Fund. Upon appropriation by the Legislature, the
moneys in that fund shall be allocated to each sponsoring agency, in
proportion to the amount in the fund that is attributable to the
agency's specialized license plate program. Except as authorized
under Section 5159, the sponsoring agency shall expend all funds
received under this section exclusively for projects and programs
that promote the agency's official policy, mission, or work.