Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB2982 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	81R9642 JAM-F
2	2	By: Phillips H.B. No. 2982
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the fees for certain license plates.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 504.003, Transportation Code, is amended
10	10	by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
11	11	follows:
12	12	(c) If a [the] souvenir license plate issued before
13	13	September 1, 2009, is personalized, the fee for the plate is
14	14	$40. Of the fee:
15	15	(1) $20 shall be deposited to the credit of the state
16	16	highway fund;
17	17	(2) $10 shall be deposited to the credit of the
18	18	designated account if the souvenir license plate is a replica of a
19	19	specialty license plate issued under Subchapter G or I for which the
20	20	fee is deposited to a designated account other than the state
21	21	highway fund; and
22	22	(3) the remainder shall be deposited to the credit of
23	23	the general revenue fund.
24	24	(c-1) The fee for a souvenir license plate issued on or
25	25	after September 1, 2009, is the amount established under Section
26	26	504.851(c).
27	27	SECTION 2. Section 504.102, Transportation Code, is amended
28	28	to read as follows:
29	29	Sec. 504.102. PERSONALIZATION OF [OTHER] SPECIALTY LICENSE
30	30	PLATE [PLATES]. Unless expressly prohibited by this chapter or
31	31	department rule, any specialty license plate issued under this
32	32	chapter may be personalized. If a [another] specialty license
33	33	plate is personalized, the fee for personalization of the specialty
34	34	license plate [established by Section 504.101(c)] shall be added to
35	35	the fee for issuance of that specialty license plate.
36	36	SECTION 3. Section 504.601, Transportation Code, is amended
37	37	to read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 504.601. GENERAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO [ALL]
39	39	SPECIALTY LICENSE PLATES FOR GENERAL DISTRIBUTION. (a) Unless
40	40	expressly provided by this subchapter or department rule:
41	41	(1) the fee for issuance of a license plate under this
42	42	subchapter is $30; and
43	43	(2) of each fee received under this subchapter, the
44	44	department shall use $8 to defray its administrative costs in
45	45	complying with this subchapter.
46	46	(b) This section does not apply to a specialty license plate
47	47	marketed and sold by a private vendor at the request of the
48	48	specialty license plate sponsor under Section 504.6011.
49	49	SECTION 4. Subchapter G, Chapter 504, Transportation Code,
50	50	is amended by adding Section 504.6011 to read as follows:
51	51	Sec. 504.6011. GENERAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO SPECIALTY
52	52	LICENSE PLATES FOR GENERAL DISTRIBUTION SOLD THROUGH PRIVATE
53	53	VENDOR. (a) The sponsor of a specialty license plate authorized to
54	54	be issued under this subchapter before September 1, 2009, may
55	55	contract with the private vendor authorized under Subchapter J for
56	56	the marketing and sale of the specialty license plate.
57	57	(b) The fee for issuance of a specialty license plate
58	58	described by Subsection (a) is the amount established under Section
59	59	504.851.
60	60	(c) Notwithstanding any other law, from each fee received
61	61	for the issuance of a specialty license plate described by
62	62	Subsection (a), the department shall:
63	63	(1) deduct the administrative costs described by
64	64	Section 504.601(a)(2);
65	65	(2) deposit to the credit of the account designated by
66	66	the law authorizing the specialty license plate the portion of the
67	67	fee for the sale of the plate that the state would ordinarily
68	68	receive under the contract described by Section 504.851(a); and
69	69	(3) pay to the private vendor the remainder of the fee.
70	70	SECTION 5. Section 504.801, Transportation Code, is amended
71	71	by amending Subsections (d), (e), and (f) and adding Subsection
72	72	(d-1) to read as follows:
73	73	(d) The fee for issuance of license plates created
74	74	[authorized] under this subchapter before September 1, 2009, is $30
75	75	unless the department sets a higher fee. This subsection does not
76	76	apply to a specialty license plate marketed and sold by a private
77	77	vendor at the request of the specialty license plate sponsor.
78	78	(d-1) The fee for issuance of license plates created under
79	79	this subchapter on or after September 1, 2009, is the amount
80	80	established under Section 504.851.
81	81	(e) For each fee collected for a license plate issued by the
82	82	department under this section:
83	83	(1) $8 shall be used to reimburse the department for
84	84	its administrative costs; and
85	85	(2) the remainder shall be deposited to the credit of:
86	86	(A) the specialty license plate fund, which is an
87	87	account in the general revenue fund, if the sponsor nominated a
88	88	state agency to receive the funds; or
89	89	(B) the state highway fund if the sponsor did not
90	90	nominate a state agency to receive the funds or if there is no
91	91	sponsor.
92	92	(f) Subchapter D, Chapter 316, Government Code, and Section
93	93	403.095, Government Code, do not apply to fees collected under this
94	94	subchapter [section].
95	95	SECTION 6. Subchapter I, Chapter 504, Transportation Code,
96	96	is amended by adding Section 504.802 to read as follows:
97	97	Sec. 504.802. MARKETING AND SALE BY PRIVATE VENDOR OF
98	98	SPECIALTY LICENSE PLATES CREATED BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1, 2009. (a) A
99	99	sponsor of a specialty license plate created under this subchapter
100	100	before September 1, 2009, may contract with the private vendor
101	101	authorized under Subchapter J for the marketing and sale of the
102	102	specialty license plate.
103	103	(b) The fee for issuance of a specialty license plate
104	104	described by Subsection (a) is the amount established under Section
105	105	504.851(c).
106	106	(c) Notwithstanding any other law, from each fee received
107	107	from the issuance of a specialty license plate marketed and sold by
108	108	the private vendor under this section, the department shall:
109	109	(1) deduct the administrative costs described by
110	110	Section 504.801(e)(1);
111	111	(2) deposit the portion of the fee for the sale of the
112	112	plate that the state would ordinarily receive under the contract
113	113	described by Section 504.851(a) to the credit of:
114	114	(A) the specialty license plate fund, if the
115	115	sponsor nominated a state agency to receive the funds; or
116	116	(B) the state highway fund, if the sponsor did
117	117	not nominate a state agency to receive the funds or if there is no
118	118	sponsor; and
119	119	(3) pay to the private vendor the remainder of the fee.
120	120	SECTION 7. Section 504.851, Transportation Code, is amended
121	121	by amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), and (j) and adding
122	122	Subsections (a-1), (a-2), and (c-1) to read as follows:
123	123	(a) The department shall enter into a contract with the
124	124	private vendor whose proposal is most advantageous to the state, as
125	125	determined from competitive sealed proposals that satisfy the
126	126	requirements of this section, for the marketing and sale of:
127	127	(1) personalized license plates [authorized by
128	128	Section 504.101]; or
129	129	(2) with the agreement of the private vendor, other
130	130	specialty license plates authorized by this chapter [subchapter].
131	131	(a-1) The department may not issue license plates with
132	132	background colors other than white, unless the plates are marketed
133	133	and sold by the private vendor.
134	134	(a-2) Specialty license plates authorized for marketing and
135	135	sale under Subsection (a) must include:
136	136	(1) specialty license plates created under
137	137	Subchapters G and I on or after September 1, 2009; and
138	138	(2) at the request of the specialty license plate
139	139	sponsor, an existing specialty license plate created under
140	140	Subchapters G and I before September 1, 2009.
141	141	(b) The director [Instead of the fees established by Section
142	142	504.101(c), the commission] by rule shall establish fees for the
143	143	issuance or renewal of personalized license plates that are
144	144	marketed and sold by the private vendor. Fees must be reasonable
145	145	and not less than the greater of:
146	146	(1) the amounts necessary to allow the department to
147	147	recover all reasonable costs to the department associated with the
148	148	evaluation of the competitive sealed proposals received by the
149	149	department and with the implementation and enforcement of the
150	150	contract, including direct, indirect, and administrative costs; or
151	151	(2) the amount established by Section 504.853(b)
152	152	[504.101(c)].
153	153	(c) The director [commission] by rule shall establish the
154	154	fees for the issuance or renewal of souvenir license plates,
155	155	specialty license plates, or souvenir or specialty license plates
156	156	that are personalized that are marketed and sold by the private
157	157	vendor. Fees must be reasonable and not less than the amounts
158	158	necessary to allow the department to recover all reasonable costs
159	159	to the department associated with the evaluation of the competitive
160	160	sealed proposals received by the department and with the
161	161	implementation and enforcement of the contract, including direct,
162	162	indirect, and administrative costs. A fee established under this
163	163	subsection is in addition to:
164	164	(1) the registration fee and any optional registration
165	165	fee prescribed by this chapter for the vehicle for which specialty
166	166	license plates are issued;
167	167	(2) any additional fee prescribed by this subchapter
168	168	for the issuance of specialty license plates for that vehicle; and
169	169	(3) any additional fee prescribed by this subchapter
170	170	for the issuance of personalized license plates for that vehicle.
171	171	(c-1) Subsections (b) and (c) do not apply to the sale at
172	172	auction of a license to display an alphanumeric pattern.
173	173	(d) At any time as necessary to comply with Subsection (b)
174	174	or (c), the director [commission] may increase [or decrease] the
175	175	amount of a fee established under the applicable subsection.
176	176	(j) From amounts received by the department under the
177	177	contract described by Subsection (a), the department shall deposit
178	178	to the credit of the state highway fund an amount sufficient to
179	179	enable the department to recover its administrative costs for all
180	180	license plates issued under this section, [including] any payments
181	181	to the vendor under the contract [Subsection (a)], and any other
182	182	amounts allocated by law to the state highway fund [by another law].
183	183	To the extent that the disposition of other amounts received by
184	184	[from] the department is [vendor are] governed by another law,
185	185	those amounts shall be deposited in accordance with the other law.
186	186	The fee [, and] for each type of license plate issued under this
187	187	chapter [the amount charged for the license plate] may not be less
188	188	than the fee [amount] in effect on January 1, 2003. Any additional
189	189	amount received by [from] the department under the contract
190	190	[vendor] shall be deposited to the credit of the state highway
191	191	[general revenue] fund.
192	192	SECTION 8. Subchapter J, Chapter 504, Transportation Code,
193	193	is amended by adding Sections 504.853, 504.854, and 504.855 to read
194	194	as follows:
195	195	Sec. 504.853. PERSONALIZED LICENSE PLATES ISSUED BEFORE
196	196	SEPTEMBER 1, 2009. (a) A personalized license plate issued before
197	197	September 1, 2009, may be issued for a subsequent registration
198	198	period only if the applicant submits an application and pays the
199	199	required fee for the applicable registration period. A person who
200	200	is issued a personalized license plate has first priority on that
201	201	license plate for each subsequent registration period for which the
202	202	person submits a new application for that plate.
203	203	(b) The fee for issuance of a personalized license plate
204	204	issued before September 1, 2009, is $40, unless the director adopts
205	205	by rule a higher fee.
206	206	(c) A person who is issued a personalized license plate by
207	207	the department before September 1, 2009, may:
208	208	(1) submit an application for the plate under
209	209	Subsection (a) and pay the required fee for each subsequent
210	210	registration period under Subsection (b); or
211	211	(2) purchase through the private vendor a license to
212	212	display the alphanumeric pattern on a license plate for any term
213	213	allowed by law.
214	214	(d) The department may not issue a replacement set of
215	215	personalized license plates to the same person before the sixth
216	216	anniversary of the date of issuance unless the applicant for
217	217	issuance of replacement plates pays an additional fee of $30.
218	218	(e) Of each fee collected by the department under this
219	219	section:
220	220	(1) $1.25 shall be used to defray the cost of
221	221	administering this section; and
222	222	(2) the remainder shall be deposited to the credit of
223	223	the general revenue fund.
224	224	Sec. 504.854. PERPETUAL LICENSE TO DISPLAY CERTAIN
225	225	ALPHANUMERIC PATTERNS. (a) A person may purchase through the
226	226	private vendor a perpetual license to display a unique alphanumeric
227	227	pattern on a license plate.
228	228	(b) A license to display an alphanumeric pattern purchased
229	229	under this section may be transferred to another person. The
230	230	transferee is entitled to the same rights and privileges as the
231	231	transferor.
232	232	(c) The transferee shall file a form prescribed by the
233	233	department to notify the department of the transfer.
234	234	Sec. 504.855. AUCTION. (a) The private vendor may sell at
235	235	auction a license to display an alphanumeric pattern.
236	236	(b) A person who purchases a license to display an
237	237	alphanumeric pattern at auction is entitled to the same rights and
238	238	privileges as a person who purchases a license plate or a license to
239	239	display an alphanumeric pattern under Section 504.854.
240	240	SECTION 9. The following provisions of the Transportation
241	241	Code are repealed:
242	242	(1) Section 504.101; and
243	243	(2) Section 504.851(m).
244	244	SECTION 10. The changes in law made by this Act do not
245	245	require the rebidding of a contract that is in effect on the
246	246	effective date of this Act.
247	247	SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.