COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 43
(By Senator Boley)
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[Originating in the Committee on Transportation;
reported February 26, 1993]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section fourteen, article three,
chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
reducing the cost of national guard plates from fifteen
dollars to five dollars on a one-time basis, providing for
payment of the special five dollar fee for veterans license
plates on a one-time basis, authorizing additional license
plates for national guard, veteran, or firefighters,
clarifying deposit of administrative fee for designing and
manufacturing special organization plates, authorizing the
issuance of a ten-year special registration plate to
disabled veterans, purple heart, prisoner of war, pearl
harbor, congressional medal of honor or antique vehicle
special plate applicants.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section fourteen, article three, chapter seventeen-a of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. ORIGINAL AND RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION; ISSUANCE OF
CERTIFICATE OF TITLE.
§17A-3-14. Registration plates generally.
The division upon registering a vehicle shall issue to the
owner one registration plate for a motorcycle, trailer,
semitrailer or other motor vehicle.
Every registration plate shall be of reflectorized material
and have displayed upon it the registration number assigned to
the vehicle for which it is issued, also the name of this state,
which may be abbreviated, and the year number for which it is
issued or the date of expiration thereof.
Such registration plate and the required letters and
numerals thereon, except the year number for which issued or the
date of expiration, shall be of sufficient size to be plainly
readable from a distance of one hundred feet during daylight,
said registration numbering to begin with number two.
The division shall not issue, permit to be issued, or
distribute any special numbers except as follows:
(a) The governor shall be issued registration plates, on one
of which shall be imprinted the numeral one and on the other the
word one.
(b) Upon appropriate application, there shall be issued to
the secretary of state, state superintendent of free schools,
auditor, treasurer, commissioner of agriculture, and the attorney
general, the members of both houses of the Legislature, including
the elected officials thereof, the justices of the supreme court
of appeals of West Virginia, the representatives and senators of
the state in the Congress of the United States, the judges of the
United States district courts for the state of West Virginia andthe judges of the United States court of appeals for the fourth
circuit, if any of said judges shall be residents of West
Virginia, a special registration plate for a class A motor
vehicle owned by said official or spouse, but not to exceed two
plates for each such official, which plate shall bear any
combination of letters not to exceed an amount determined by the
commissioner, and with a designation of the office and which
plate shall supersede, during his term of office and while such
motor vehicle is owned by said official or spouse, the regular
numbered plate assigned to him. A fee of fifteen dollars shall
be charged in addition to all other fees required by this
chapter.
(c) Upon receipt of an application on a form prescribed by
the division and receipt of written evidence from the chief
executive officer of the army national guard or air national
guard, as appropriate, or the commanding officer of any United
States Armed Forces Reserve Unit that the applicant is a member
thereof, the division shall issue to any member of the national
guard of this state or a member of any reserve unit of the United
States Armed Forces a special registration plate designed by the
commissioner for any number of Class A motor vehicles titled in
the name of the qualified applicant. A one time fee of five
dollars shall be collected by the division and deposited into a
special revolving fund to be used in the administration of this
section in addition to all other fees required by this chapter.
(d) Upon appropriate application, any owner of a motor
vehicle subject to Class A registration, or the owner of a
motorcycle subject to Class G registration, under the provisionsof this article, may request that the division issue a
registration plate bearing specially arranged letters or numbers
with the maximum number of letters or numbers to be determined by
the commissioner. The division shall attempt to comply with such
request wherever possible and shall promulgate appropriate rules
and regulations for the orderly distribution of such plates:
Provided, That for purposes of this subdivision, such
registration plates so requested and issued shall include all
plates bearing the numbers two through two thousand. A fee of
fifteen dollars shall be charged in addition to all other fees
required by this chapter.
(e) Upon appropriate application, there shall be issued to
any honorably discharged veteran, of any branch of the armed
services of the United States, a special registration plate for
any vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant with an
insignia designed by the commissioner of the division of motor
vehicles. A special one-time fee of five dollars shall be
charged in addition to all other fees required by law. This
special fee is to compensate the division of motor vehicles for
additional costs and services required in the issuing of such
special registration and shall be collected by the division and
deposited in a special revolving fund to be used for the
administration of this section: Provided, That nothing in this
section shall be construed to exempt said veterans from any other
provision in this chapter.
(f) Upon appropriate application, there shall be issued to
any disabled veteran, who is exempt from the payment of
registration fees under the provisions of this chapter, aregistration plate which bears the letters "DV" in red, and also
the regular identification numerals in red.
(g) Upon appropriate application, there shall be issued to
any armed service person holding the distinguished purple heart
medal for persons wounded in combat a registration plate for a
vehicle titled in the name of the qualified applicant bearing
letters or numbers. The registration plate for a vehicle titled
in the name of the qualified applicant designed by the
commissioner of motor vehicles shall denote that those
individuals who are granted this special registration plate are
recipients of the purple heart. All letterings as herein
provided shall be in purple where practical. Further, the
registration plates herein provided shall be exempt from
registration fees under the provisions of this chapter.
(h) Upon appropriate application, the owner of a motor
vehicle who was enlisted in any branch of the armed services that
participated in and survived the attack on Pearl Harbor on the
seventh day of December, one thousand nine hundred forty-one,
shall be issued a special registration plate designed by the
commissioner of motor vehicles and shall be exempt from the
payment of registration fees as required under the provisions of
this chapter.
(i) Subject to rules promulgated by the commissioner,
nonprofit charitable and educational organizations shall be
authorized to design a logo or emblem for inclusion on a special
registration plate and to market this special registration plate
to organization members and the general public. Approved
nonprofit organizations may accept applications for the specialregistration plate from the owner of motor vehicles subject to a
Class A registration and payment of a fee of fifteen dollars in
addition to all other fees required by this chapter and may
request that the division issue a registration plate bearing a
combination of letters or numbers with the organizations' logo or
emblem, with the maximum number of letters or numbers to be
determined by the commissioner: Provided, That such rules,
regulations and standards that are promulgated by the
commissioner for purpose of this subdivision shall be promulgated
in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of
this code. Nonprofit organizations seeking to market such plates
shall be authorized to collect a fee for successfully processing
a registration plate application and shall deposit an appropriate
fee, which shall be determined by the commissioner, with the
division of motor vehicles to defray the administrative costs
associated with designing and manufacturing special registration
plates for the organization. Such fee shall be deposited in a
special revolving fund to be used for the administration of this
section.
(j) Any owner of a motor vehicle who is a resident of the
state of West Virginia, and who is a certified paramedic or
emergency medical technician, a member of a volunteer fire
company, a paid fire department, a member of the state fire
commission, the state fire marshal, the state fire marshal's
assistants, the state fire administrator and voluntary rescue
squad members upon application, accompanied by an affidavit
signed by the fire chief or department head of the applicant,
stating that the applicant is justified in having a registrationwith an insignia designed by the commissioner of the division of
motor vehicles to denote those individuals who are granted
special registration plates under this article, complying with
the motor vehicle laws of the state relative to registration
and licensing of motor vehicles, and upon payment of the
registration, license and other fees required by law, and the
payment of the additional special fee herein provided, shall be
issued a license plate for any Class A vehicle, titled in the
name of the qualified applicant upon which, in lieu of the
registration number prescribed by law, shall be inscribed the
insignia designed by the commissioner of the division of motor
vehicles to denote those individuals who are granted this special
registration insignia in addition to their existing registration
numbers.
The special fee that shall be charged each applicant for the
issuance of a license plate bearing the insignia designed by the
commissioner of the division of motor vehicles to denote those
individuals who are granted this special registration insignia in
addition to their existing registration number, shall be five
dollars, which special fee shall be in addition to all other fees
required by law. This special fee is for the purpose of
compensating the division of motor vehicles for additional costs
and services required in the issuing of such special registration
and shall be collected by the division and deposited in a special
revolving fund to be used for the administration of this section.
The commissioner is authorized to prescribe proper forms to
be used in making application for the special license plates
authorized by this section.
(k) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a
charge for a free prisoner of war license plate or a free license
plate for recipients of the congressional medal of honor for
vehicles titled in the name of the qualified applicant authorized
by other provisions of this code.
The commissioner is authorized to issue or renew any
registration plate exempted from registration fees by this
section or any other section of the code, or restricted use
antique motor vehicle license plate authorized by section three-
a, article ten of this chapter for a maximum period of ten years
or portion thereof. The commissioner shall collect the total
amount of fees required by section fifteen, article ten and
section three, article three of this chapter or section three-a,
article ten of this chapter for the period of renewal.
These provisions shall not be construed to exempt the
registrant from maintaining liability insurance on such vehicle
or annual payment of personal property taxes on such vehicle when
required by other provisions of the code. These provisions shall
also not be construed so as to extend the validity of any free
registration plate issued under the provisions of this chapter
beyond the natural life of the qualified recipient of the free
registration plate.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, or of any
other provision of this chapter, the commissioner may, in his or
her discretion, issue a type of registration plate of
reflectorized material suitable for permanent use on motor
vehicles, trailers and semitrailers, together with appropriate
devices to be attached thereto to indicate the year for whichsuch vehicles have been properly registered or the date of
expiration of such registration. The design and expiration of
such plates shall be determined by the commissioner.
Further, notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter to
the contrary, any license plate issued or renewed pursuant to
this chapter, which is paid for by a check that is returned for
nonsufficient funds, shall be void without further notice to the
applicant, and the applicant may not reinstate the registration
until the returned check is paid by the applicant in cash, money
order or certified check and all applicable fees assessed as a
result thereof have been paid.
Note: The purpose of this bill is to lower the special fee
for a National Guard or Reserve plate from $15.00 to $5.00, to
provide for a one time fee of $5.00 for Veterans plates to allow
qualified applicants for National Guard, Veteran or Firefighter
plates to obtain as many plates as desired for use on vehicles
owned by the applicant, to clarify that money collected from
special organizations for the purpose of designing the processing
plates for such organization is deposited into a special
revolving account used in the administration of this section, and
to authorize the issuance and renewal of free license plates and
antique plates for a ten year period.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.