BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center S.B. 1227 89R11553 CXP-D By: Flores Transportation 3/20/2025 As Filed AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT Veterans and active military personnel have the ability to apply for specialized license plates under Sections 504.3015(a) and (b) of the Transportation Code. The application process currently requires an additional $3 fee on license plates for Pearl Harbor survivors and Purple Heart recipients. S.B. 1227 would eliminate this "special fee" in order to put the fee schedule on parity with other military merit plates and clean up the language in the section. As proposed, S.B. 1227 amends current law relating to fees for the issuance of certain military specialty license plates. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Sections 504.3015(a) and (b), Transportation Code, as follows: (a) Requires a person applying for a set of license plates under Subchapter D (Specialty License Plates for the Military), Chapter 504 (License Plates), to pay the registration fee required under Chapter 502 (Registration of Vehicles), rather than the fee required under Chapter 502 and the applicable special plate fee required under Section 504.301 (Provisions Generally Applicable to Military Specialty License Plates), except that one set of license plates is required to be issued without the payment of the registration fee under certain provisions. (b) Provides that, except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, there is no additional fee for a specialty license plate issued under this subchapter, rather than under another provision of this subchapter. Deletes existing text providing that the fee for the issuance of one set of specialty license plates issued under Section 504.315(d) (relating to specialty plates for recipients of certain military awards) or (g) (relating to specialty plates for recipients of the Purple Heart) is $3. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 2025. BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center S.B. 1227 89R11553 CXP-D By: Flores Transportation 3/20/2025 As Filed Senate Research Center S.B. 1227 89R11553 CXP-D By: Flores Transportation 3/20/2025 As Filed AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT Veterans and active military personnel have the ability to apply for specialized license plates under Sections 504.3015(a) and (b) of the Transportation Code. The application process currently requires an additional $3 fee on license plates for Pearl Harbor survivors and Purple Heart recipients. S.B. 1227 would eliminate this "special fee" in order to put the fee schedule on parity with other military merit plates and clean up the language in the section. As proposed, S.B. 1227 amends current law relating to fees for the issuance of certain military specialty license plates. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Sections 504.3015(a) and (b), Transportation Code, as follows: (a) Requires a person applying for a set of license plates under Subchapter D (Specialty License Plates for the Military), Chapter 504 (License Plates), to pay the registration fee required under Chapter 502 (Registration of Vehicles), rather than the fee required under Chapter 502 and the applicable special plate fee required under Section 504.301 (Provisions Generally Applicable to Military Specialty License Plates), except that one set of license plates is required to be issued without the payment of the registration fee under certain provisions. (b) Provides that, except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, there is no additional fee for a specialty license plate issued under this subchapter, rather than under another provision of this subchapter. Deletes existing text providing that the fee for the issuance of one set of specialty license plates issued under Section 504.315(d) (relating to specialty plates for recipients of certain military awards) or (g) (relating to specialty plates for recipients of the Purple Heart) is $3. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 2025.