CS/HB 247 2024
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to services provided by the Department 2
of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or its agents; 3
amending s. 319.28, F.S.; providing that a certain 4
affidavit establishes a presumption of ownership and 5
right of possession to a motor vehicle or mobile home 6
the previous owner of which died testate; requiring 7
the attesting attorney to provide to the department a 8
current copy of his or her certificate of g ood 9
standing issued by The Florida Bar; amending s. 10
319.29, F.S.; prohibiting the department or a tax 11
collector from charging a fee for reissuance of 12
certain certificates of title; amending s. 320.06, 13
F.S.; authorizing permanent registration of certain 14
rental trucks; authorizing the department to deem a 15
license plate with reduced dimensions to be necessary 16
to accommodate trailers; amending s. 320.084, F.S.; 17
authorizing certain disabled veterans to be issued a 18
military license plate or specialty license plat e in 19
lieu of a "DV" license plate; specifying applicable 20
fees; specifying nonapplicability of certain 21
provisions; amending s. 320.131, F.S.; authorizing the 22
department to design, issue, and regulate the use of 23
temporary tags where the existing owner of a v ehicle 24
has submitted an application to transfer a valid out -25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
of-state title that is subject to a lien; authorizing 26
the department to design, issue, and regulate the use 27
of temporary tags where an active -duty military 28
servicemember who has a valid Florida dr iver license 29
provides evidence satisfactory to the department that 30
he or she is deployed outside this state; providing 31
the period of validity of such temporary tags; 32
removing provisions requiring a written, notarized 33
request for the purchase of a temporary tag; providing 34
an effective date. 35
36
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 37
38
Section 1. Paragraphs (c) and (d) of subsection (1) of 39
section 319.28, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as paragraphs 40
(d) and (e), respectively, and a new paragraph (c) is added to 41
that subsection to read: 42
319.28 Transfer of ownership by operation of law. — 43
(1) 44
(c) If the previous owner died testate and the application 45
for a certificate of title is made by, and accompanied by an 46
affidavit attested by , a Florida-licensed attorney in good 47
standing with The Florida Bar who is representing the previous 48
owner's estate, such affidavit shall, for purposes of paragraph 49
(a), establish a presumption of ownership, absent information 50
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received to the contrary, and right of possession to the motor 51
vehicle or mobile home, so long as the affidavit sets forth the 52
rightful heir or heirs and the attorney attests in the affidavit 53
that such heir or heirs are lawfully entitled to the rights of 54
ownership and possession of th e motor vehicle or mobile home. 55
The attesting attorney shall provide to the department a current 56
copy of his or her certificate of good standing issued by The 57
Florida Bar. It shall not be necessary for the application for 58
certificate of title filed under t his paragraph to be 59
accompanied by a copy of the will or other testamentary 60
instrument. 61
Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 319.29, Florida 62
Statutes, is amended to read: 63
319.29 Lost or destroyed certificates. — 64
(3) If, following the issuance of an original, duplicate, 65
or corrected certificate of title by the department, the 66
certificate is lost in transit and is not delivered to the 67
addressee, the owner of the motor vehicle or mobile home, or the 68
holder of a lien thereon, may, within 180 days of the date of 69
issuance of the title, apply to the department for reissuance of 70
the certificate of title. An No additional fee shall not be 71
charged by the department or a tax collector, as agent for the 72
department, for reissuance under this subsection. 73
Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) and paragraph 74
(a) of subsection (3) of section 320.06, Florida Statutes, are 75
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amended to read: 76
320.06 Registration certificates, license plates, and 77
validation stickers generally. — 78
(1) 79
(b)1. Registration license pla tes bearing a graphic symbol 80
and the alphanumeric system of identification shall be issued 81
for a 10-year period. At the end of the 10 -year period, upon 82
renewal, the plate shall be replaced. The department shall 83
extend the scheduled license plate replacemen t date from a 6-84
year period to a 10-year period. The fee for such replacement is 85
$28, $2.80 of which shall be paid each year before the plate is 86
replaced, to be credited toward the next $28 replacement fee. 87
The fees shall be deposited into the Highway Safe ty Operating 88
Trust Fund. A credit or refund may not be given for any prior 89
years' payments of the prorated replacement fee if the plate is 90
replaced or surrendered before the end of the 10 -year period, 91
except that a credit may be given if a registrant is re quired by 92
the department to replace a license plate under s. 93
320.08056(8)(a). With each license plate, a validation sticker 94
shall be issued showing the owner's birth month, license plate 95
number, and the year of expiration or the appropriate renewal 96
period if the owner is not a natural person. The validation 97
sticker shall be placed on the upper right corner of the license 98
plate. The license plate and validation sticker shall be issued 99
based on the applicant's appropriate renewal period. The 100
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registration period is 12 months, the extended registration 101
period is 24 months, and all expirations occur based on the 102
applicant's appropriate registration period. Rental vehicles 103
taxed pursuant to s. 320.08(6)(a) and rental trucks taxed 104
pursuant to s. 320.08(3)(a), (b), and (c) and (4)(a)-(d) may 105
elect a permanent registration period, provided payment of the 106
appropriate license taxes and fees occurs annually. 107
2. A vehicle that has an apportioned registration shall be 108
issued an annual license plate and a cab card that de note the 109
declared gross vehicle weight for each apportioned jurisdiction 110
in which the vehicle is authorized to operate. This subparagraph 111
expires June 30, 2024. 112
3. Beginning July 1, 2024, a vehicle registered in 113
accordance with the International Registration Plan must be 114
issued a license plate for a 3 -year period. At the end of the 3 -115
year period, upon renewal, the license plate must be replaced. 116
Each license plate must include a validation sticker showing the 117
month of expiration. A cab card denoti ng the declared gross 118
vehicle weight for each apportioned jurisdiction must be issued 119
annually. The fee for an original or a renewal cab card is $28, 120
which must be deposited into the Highway Safety Operating Trust 121
Fund. If the license plate is damaged or w orn, it may be 122
replaced at no charge by applying to the department and 123
surrendering the current license plate. 124
4. In order to retain the efficient administration of the 125
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taxes and fees imposed by this chapter, the 80 -cent fee increase 126
in the replacement f ee imposed by chapter 2009 -71, Laws of 127
Florida, is negated as provided in s. 320.0804. 128
(3)(a) Registration license plates must be made of metal 129
specially treated with a retroreflection material, as specified 130
by the department. The registration license pl ate is designed to 131
increase nighttime visibility and legibility and must be at 132
least 6 inches wide and not less than 12 inches in length, 133
unless a plate with reduced dimensions is deemed necessary by 134
the department to accommodate motorcycles, mopeds, or similar 135
smaller vehicles, or trailers. Validation stickers must also be 136
treated with a retroreflection material, must be of such size as 137
specified by the department, and must adhere to the license 138
plate. The registration license plate must be imprinted with a 139
combination of bold letters and numerals or numerals, not to 140
exceed seven digits, to identify the registration license plate 141
number. The license plate must be imprinted with the word 142
"Florida" at the top and the name of the county in which it is 143
sold, the state motto, or the words "Sunshine State" at the 144
bottom. Apportioned license plates must have the word 145
"Apportioned" at the bottom, and license plates issued for 146
vehicles taxed under s. 320.08(3)(d), (4)(m) or (n), (5)(b) or 147
(c), or (14) must have the w ord "Restricted" at the bottom. 148
License plates issued for vehicles taxed under s. 320.08(12) 149
must be imprinted with the word "Florida" at the top and the 150
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word "Dealer" at the bottom unless the license plate is a 151
specialty license plate as authorized in s. 320.08056. 152
Manufacturer license plates issued for vehicles taxed under s. 153
320.08(12) must be imprinted with the word "Florida" at the top 154
and the word "Manufacturer" at the bottom. License plates issued 155
for vehicles taxed under s. 320.08(5)(d) or (e) must be 156
imprinted with the word "Wrecker" at the bottom. Any county may, 157
upon majority vote of the county commission, elect to have the 158
county name removed from the license plates sold in that county. 159
The state motto or the words "Sunshine State" shall be print ed 160
in lieu thereof. A license plate issued for a vehicle taxed 161
under s. 320.08(6) may not be assigned a registration license 162
number, or be issued with any other distinctive character or 163
designation, that distinguishes the motor vehicle as a for -hire 164
motor vehicle. 165
Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 320.084, Florida 166
Statutes, is amended, and subsection (6) is added to that 167
section, to read: 168
320.084 Free motor vehicle license plate to certain 169
disabled veterans.— 170
(1) One free "DV" motor vehicle license number plate shall 171
be issued by the department for use on any motor vehicle owned 172
or leased by any disabled veteran who has been a resident of 173
this state continuously for the preceding 5 years or has 174
established a domicile in this state as provided by s . 175
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222.17(1), (2), or (3), and who has been honorably discharged 176
from the United States Armed Forces, upon application, 177
accompanied by proof that: 178
(a) A vehicle was initially acquired through financial 179
assistance by the United States Department of Veteran s Affairs 180
or its predecessor specifically for the purchase of an 181
automobile; 182
(b) The applicant has been determined by the United States 183
Department of Veterans Affairs or its predecessor to have a 184
service-connected 100-percent disability rating for 185
compensation; or 186
(c) The applicant has been determined to have a service -187
connected disability rating of 100 percent and is in receipt of 188
disability retirement pay from any branch of the United States 189
Armed Services. 190
(6)(a) A disabled veteran who meets the re quirements of 191
subsection (1) may be issued, in lieu of the "DV" license plate, 192
a military license plate for which he or she is eligible or a 193
specialty license plate. A disabled veteran electing a military 194
license plate or specialty license plate under this subsection 195
must pay all applicable fees related to such license plate, 196
except for fees otherwise waived under subsections (1) and (4). 197
(b) A military license plate or specialty license plate 198
elected under this subsection: 199
1. Does not provide the prote ctions or rights afforded by 200
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ss. 316.1955, 316.1964, 320.0848, 526.141, and 553.5041. 201
2. Is not eligible for the international symbol of 202
accessibility as described in s. 320.0842. 203
Section 5. Subsection (2) of section 320.131, Florida 204
Statutes, is amended, and paragraphs (m) and (n) are added to 205
subsection (1) of that section, to read: 206
320.131 Temporary tags. — 207
(1) The department is authorized and empowered to design, 208
issue, and regulate the use of temporary tags to be designated 209
"temporary tags" for use in the following cases: 210
(m) Where the existing owner of a vehicle has submitted an 211
application to transfer a valid out -of-state title that is 212
subject to a lien. A temporary tag issued for this purpose shall 213
be valid for 60 days. 214
(n) Where an active-duty military servicemember who has a 215
valid Florida driver license provides evidence satisfactory to 216
the department that he or she is deployed outside this state. A 217
temporary tag issued for this purpose shall be valid for 60 218
days. 219
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Further, the departme nt is authorized to disallow the purchase 221
of temporary tags by licensed dealers, common carriers, or 222
financial institutions in those cases where abuse has occurred. 223
(2) The department may is authorized to sell temporary 224
tags, in addition to those listed above, to its their agents and 225
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where need is demonstrated by a consumer complainant. The fee 226
for a temporary tag issued under this section shall be $2 each. 227
One dollar from each tag sold shall be deposited into the Brain 228
and Spinal Cord Injury Program Trus t Fund, with the remaining 229
proceeds being deposited into the Highway Safety Operating Trust 230
Fund. Agents of the department shall sell temporary tags for $2 231
each and shall charge the service charge authorized by s. 320.04 232
per transaction, regardless of the quantity sold. Requests for 233
purchase of temporary tags to the department or its agents shall 234
be made, where applicable, on letterhead stationery and 235
notarized. Except as specifically provided otherwise, a 236
temporary tag issued under this section shall be valid for 30 237
days, and no more than two shall be issued to the same person 238
for the same vehicle. 239
Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024. 240