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STATE OF MAINE
_____
IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-THREE
_____
S.P. 738 - L.D. 1822
An Act to Amend the Specialty License Plate Laws and Extend the
Moratorium on Approval of Specialty License Plates and Remove the
Authority of Municipalities to Issue Driver's Licenses
Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and
Whereas, the moratorium on the Department of the Secretary of State, Bureau of
Motor Vehicles' approval of specialty license plates or recognition license plates expires
July 14, 2023; and
Whereas, this legislation extends that moratorium until June 30, 2024; and
Whereas, without this legislation taking effect immediately, there will be a period of
time when no moratorium is in effect, which is not the intended effect of this legislation;
and
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now,
therefore,
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §201, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2017, c. 229, §9, is further
amended to read:
1. Appointment of agents by Secretary of State; scope of authority.
approval of the municipal officers, the Secretary of State may appoint a municipal tax
collector, or other persons designated by a municipality, to collect excise taxes on vehicles
and to receive applications for noncommercial driver's license renewals and duplicates,
nondriver identification card renewals and duplicates and new registrations and renewals
of registrations of motor vehicles, trailers and semitrailers. The Secretary of State may
authorize a municipal agent to issue renewals and duplicates of noncommercial driver's
licenses, nondriver identification cards, new registrations and renewals of registrations or
may limit the agent's authority to the issuance of renewals only.
APPROVED
JUNE 23, 2023
BY GOVERNOR
CHAPTER
271
PUBLIC LAW Page 2 - 131LR0450(03)
Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §201, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2019, c. 255, §1, is further
amended to read:
3. Service fees.
charge service fees for registrations and renewals of licenses and registrations as follows.
A. A municipal agent may charge an applicant a fee not to exceed $3 over the required
fee for each renewal of a noncommercial driver's license or nondriver identification
card issued and a fee not to exceed $5 over the required fee for each renewal of a
registration issued and a fee not to exceed $6 over the required fee for each new
registration issued.
B. In a municipality in which agents are authorized to issue registrations or renewals
of noncommercial driver's licenses, nondriver identification cards or registrations for
applicants from another municipality or from an unorganized territory, the agent may
charge those applicants $1 in addition to the fees authorized by this subsection for each
registration or renewal.
C. A municipal agent authorized to issue temporary registration permits may charge
an applicant a fee not to exceed $1 over the required permit fee.
D. A municipal agent authorized to process permits and decals for vehicles with gross
vehicle weight in excess of 6,000 pounds may charge a fee not to exceed $1 over the
required fee for each permit or decal issued.
E. A municipal agent may charge a fee not to exceed $1 over the required fee for the
issuance of a duplicate registration, duplicate noncommercial driver's license or
duplicate nondriver identification card.
G. A municipal agent may charge an applicant a fee not to exceed $1 $2 over the
required fee when an applicant is requesting issuance of a set of plates designated as
specialty license plates by the Secretary of State to replace previously issued plates.
H. The Secretary of State may authorize municipal agents to charge a fee not to exceed
$1 over the required fee for other transactions that the municipal agent carries out on
behalf of the Secretary of State and that are not listed in this subsection.
The municipality may retain all service fees authorized in this subsection.
Sec. 3. 29-A MRSA §456-C, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 240, Pt. LLLL,
§2, is amended to read:
4. Issuance.
number or letter sequence or a combination of a number and letter sequence.
Sec. 4. 29-A MRSA §456-D, sub-§4,
§7, is amended to read:
4. Design.
the Secretary of State for approval or modification in accordance with section 468,
subsection 5 1-B. The design must include the shape of the boundaries of the State of
Maine, with an image of a curled ribbon superimposed over the shape of the State, with the
words "We Support Our Troops" printed along the bottom of the plate. The Secretary of
State shall provide the final design to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having
jurisdiction over transportation matters prior to manufacture of the plates. The Secretary of Page 3 - 131LR0450(03)
State shall issue upon request We Support Our Troops plates that are also vanity plates. We
Support Our Troops plates are issued in accordance with the provisions of this section and
section 453.
Sec. 5. 29-A MRSA §456-F, sub-§6, as amended by PL 2011, c. 556, §3, is further
amended to read:
6. Duplicate plates.
in a 3-number and 3-letter combination sequence or in another sequence at the discretion
of the Secretary of State. Vanity plates may not duplicate vanity plates issued in another
class of plate.
Sec. 6. 29-A MRSA §468, as amended by PL 2021, c. 216, §12, is further amended
to read:
§468. Specialty license plate
The Secretary of State may not issue a specialty license plate until the sponsor has met
all of the requirements of this section and the proposed specialty license plate legislation
as required in subsection 7 is reviewed by the joint standing committee of the Legislature
having jurisdiction over transportation matters and approved by the Legislature. For the
purposes of this subchapter, "specialty license plate" means a specially designed
registration plate that may be used in place of the regular plate and registration for
fundraising purposes. The Secretary of State shall administer a specialty license plate in
accordance with the following provisions.
1. Sponsor.
from the Secretary of State as the sponsor of a specialty license plate.
1-A. Sponsor affiliation.
responsible for oversight of the collection and distribution of the contributions collected
under subsection 2, paragraph B and not returned pursuant to subsection 2, paragraph C,
which, except as provided by subsection 2, must be deposited in an other special revenue
account to provide essential services to the public. To obtain preliminary approval in
subsection 1-B, the sponsor shall provide documentation to the Secretary of State
identifying the state department providing oversight and that department shall submit in
writing on departmental letterhead to the Secretary of State that it agrees to oversee the
collection and distribution of the contributions.
1-B. Plate design approval.
process.
A. A sponsor shall submit the documentation under subsection 1-A to the Secretary of
State and obtain from the Secretary of State preliminary approval of the proposed
specialty license plate design before proceeding with subsection 2.
B. Before preliminarily approving the proposed specialty license plate design, the
Secretary of State shall obtain the services of a professional designer, paid by the
sponsor, to format the plate to meet the Secretary of State's design requirements and
standards. The Secretary of State shall consult with the Maine State Police and the
Maine Turnpike Authority to evaluate the human and electronic readability of the plate
design. Page 4 - 131LR0450(03)
C. Before manufacturing the specialty license plate, the Secretary of State shall provide
the final design for a specialty license plate to the joint standing committee of the
Legislature having jurisdiction over transportation matters for review.
2. Names, signatures and payment.
authorized specialty license plate unless the sponsor:
A. Provides to the Secretary of State a list with 2,000 4,000 names, dated signatures
and current plate numbers of supporters who have physically signed a statement on
paper declaring they intend to purchase and display the specialty license plate; and
B. Collects from each supporter who signs the statement an amount of $25 for each
set of plates and provides to the Secretary of State the sum of these contributions in the
amount of $50,000 $100,000, which is nonrefundable.; and
C. Informs each supporter that the $25 contribution will be returned to the supporter
within 90 days if the requirements in subsection 7 are not met within one year.
The Secretary of State shall deposit the $50,000 $100,000 provided under paragraph B in
the Specialty License Plate Fund established under section 469.
3-A. Credit receipts voucher. The Secretary of State shall provide 2,000 credit
receipts to the sponsor to provide to each supporter a voucher to each of the 4,000
supporters that contributed $25. The credit receipt voucher may be used only to obtain one
set of specialty license plates.
3-B. Registration fee.
regular motor vehicle registration fee required by section 501 and the excise tax required
by Title 36, section 1482.
3-C. Fee; credit to funds.
specialty license plates approved for issuance after June 30, 2024. In addition to the regular
motor vehicle registration fee prescribed by law for the particular class of vehicle
registered, the initial fee for the specialty license plates is $20, which must be deposited
with the Treasurer of State and credited as follows:
A. Ten dollars to the other special revenue account under subsection 1-A for purposes
specified in the account description;
B. Nine dollars to the Highway Fund for administrative and production costs; and
C. One dollar to the Specialty License Plate Fund established under section 469.
3-D. Renewal fee.
specialty license plates after June 30, 2024. In addition to the regular motor vehicle
registration fee prescribed by law for the particular class of vehicle registered, the annual
renewal fee for the specialty license plates is $15, which must be deposited with the
Treasurer of State and credited as follows:
A. Ten dollars to the other special revenue account under subsection 1-A for purposes
specified in the account description;
B. Four dollars to the Highway Fund for administrative and production costs; and
C. One dollar to the Specialty License Plate Fund established under section 469. Page 5 - 131LR0450(03)
4. Minimum number manufactured.
minimum of 2,000 4,000 specialty license plates for each specialty license plate authorized
under this section.
5. Design approval. A sponsor must submit a proposed design for a specialty license
plate for approval or modification by the Secretary of State. The joint standing committee
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over transportation matters shall review the final
design for a specialty license plate prior to manufacture of the plate.
6. Numbering, lettering and duplicate plates. section 456‑C,
the The Secretary of State shall issue a specialty license plate in a 3-number and 3-letter
combination sequence. Plate numbers may not duplicate plates issued in another class of
plate. Vanity plates may not duplicate vanity plates issued in another class of plate. This
subsection does not apply to a person that holds a specialty license plate with duplicate
numbers in another class of plate or a duplicate vanity plate in another class of plate issued
in accordance with section 453 prior to July 1, 2023, as long as the person maintains a valid
registration with that plate.
7. Deadline for Secretary of State approval.
Secretary of State the names, signatures, payment and proposed design for the specialty
license plate by September 1st. The signatures must have been collected in-person within
2 years one year of submission to the Secretary of State. Electronically collected signatures
may not be accepted. If the design is approved pursuant to subsection 5 requirements of
subsections 1, 1-A, 1-B and 2 are met, the Secretary of State shall submit proposed
legislation seeking authorization of the specialty license plate to the following regular
session of the Legislature.
8. Weight limit. ‑F, subsection 7, paragraph B,
a specialty license plate under this subchapter may be issued for an automobile or truck
that does not exceed 26,000 pounds registered weight. After June 30, 2024, an automobile
or truck that is issued a specialty license plate may not exceed 10,000 pounds registered
weight.
9. Limit on authorization.
plate authorized after January 1, 2007 if the number of registrations falls below 4,000 for
more than one year manage the number of approved specialty license plates in accordance
with this subsection.
C. When a specialty license plate falls to 4,500 registrations, the Secretary of State
shall notify the sponsor and the joint standing committee of the Legislature having
jurisdiction over transportation matters of the Secretary of State's intent to retire and
cease to issue the specialty license plate if the number of registrations falls below 4,000
for one year. The Secretary of State shall provide the sponsor with monthly updates.
D. The Secretary of State shall retire, cease to issue and replace upon renewal a
specialty license plate if the number of registrations falls below 4,000 for more than
one year.
E. The Secretary of State shall retire, cease to issue and replace upon renewal a
specialty license plate if the entity receiving a distribution of the contributions ceases
to operate or does not comply with this section. Page 6 - 131LR0450(03)
F. When the total number of approved specialty license plates reaches 15, the Secretary
of State may not approve a specialty license plate sponsor under subsection 1. The
sponsor's name and affiliated state department identified pursuant to subsection 1-A
must be added to a waiting list in the order of the received requests.
10. Additional versions or classes of the specialty license plate. The Secretary of
State may not issue a specialty license plate in a motorcycle, trailer or commercial vehicle
class if: class other than passenger plates.
A. At least 10,000 sets of the specialty plate have been issued for automobiles and
pickup trucks;
B. The sponsor of the specialty plate under this subsection provides a list of 500 names
for each class requested, dated signatures and current plate numbers of supporters who
have signed a statement declaring they intend to purchase and display the motorcycle,
trailer or commercial vehicle class of specialty license plate; and
C. The sponsor collects from each supporter who signs the statement under paragraph
B a contribution of $25 for each set of plates and provides to the Secretary of State the
sum of these contributions in the amount of $12,500, which is nonrefundable.
Upon receipt of the $12,500 provided under paragraph C, the Secretary of State shall
prepare enabling legislation and a proposed plate design for submission to the Legislature
and shall deposit the $12,500 in the Specialty License Plate Fund established under section
469.
Commercial plates issued prior to July 1, 2023 under sections 455 and 456-F are exempt
from this subsection.
11. Affiliated state department.
department identified pursuant to subsection 1-A an annual independent audit of the other
special revenue account. The affiliated state department shall provide to the Secretary of
State an annual audit report and an accounting of the contributions received and distributed
during that reporting period. The Secretary of State shall provide the report to the joint
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over transportation matters.
Sec. 7. Resolve 2021, c. 108, §1
Sec. 8. The Department of the Secretary of State, Bureau of Motor
Vehicles, notwithstanding the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, sections 468 and 468-A,
may not approve any specialty license plate or recognition license plate sponsor to begin
the specialty license plate or recognition license plate signature gathering process, bring
forth enabling legislation or otherwise initiate any new designs, redesigns or additional
specialty license plates or recognition license plates, other than those already approved and
enacted, until June 30, 2025.
Emergency clause.
takes effect when approved.