Senate Bill No. 68

(By Senators Bailey, Caldwell and Minard)

____________

[Introduced January 8, 2003; referred to the Committee on Transportation and then to the committee on Finance.]

____________
A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-three, article three, chapter seventeen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to providing for motor vehicle registration plates for the division of protective services and the state fire marshal.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-three, 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 CERTIFICATES OF TITLE.

§17A-3-23. Registration plates to state, county, municipal and other governmental vehicles; use for undercover activities.

(a) Any motor vehicle designed to carry passengers, owned or leased by the state of West Virginia, or any of its departments, bureaus, commissions or institutions, except vehicles used by the governor, treasurer, three plates per elected office of the board of public works, vehicles operated by the state police, vehicles operated by conservation officers of the division of natural resources, not to exceed ten vehicles operated by the arson investigators of vehicles operated by the office of state fire marshal and not to exceed sixteen vehicles operated by inspectors of the office of the alcohol beverage control commissioner, may not be operated or driven by any person unless it has displayed and attached to the front thereof of the vehicles, in the same manner as regular motor vehicle registration plates are attached, a plate of the same size as the regular registration plate, with white lettering on a green background bearing the words "West Virginia" in one line and the words "State Car" in another line and the lettering for the words "State Car" shall be of sufficient size to be plainly readable from a distance of one hundred feet during daylight.
The vehicle shall also have attached to the rear a plate bearing a number and any other words and figures as the commissioner of motor vehicles shall prescribe. The rear plate shall also be green with the number in white.
(b) On registration plates issued to vehicles owned by counties, the color shall be white on red with the word "County" on top of the plate and the words "West Virginia" on the bottom. On any registration plates issued to a city or municipality, the color shall be white on blue with the word "City" on top and the words "West Virginia" on the bottom. The colors may not be reversed and shall be of reflectorized material. The registration plates issued to counties, municipalities and other governmental agencies authorized to receive colored plates hereunder shall be affixed to both the front and rear of the vehicles.
(c) Registration plates issued to vehicles operated by county sheriffs shall be designed by the commissioner in cooperation with the sheriffs' association with the word "Sheriff" on top of the plate and the words "West Virginia" on the bottom. The plate shall contain a gold shield representing the sheriff's star and a number assigned to that plate by the commissioner. Every county sheriff shall provide the commissioner with a list of vehicles operated by the sheriff, unless otherwise provided in this section, and a fee of ten dollars for each vehicle submitted by the first day of July, two thousand two.
(d) The commissioner is authorized to designate the colors and design of any other registration plates that are issued without charge to any other agency in accordance with the motor vehicle laws.
(e) Upon application, the commissioner is authorized to issue a maximum of five Class A license plates per applicant to be used by county sheriffs and municipalities on law-enforcement vehicles while engaged in undercover investigations.
(f) The commissioner is authorized to issue an unlimited number of license plates per applicant to authorized drug and violent crime task forces in the state of West Virginia when the chairperson of the control group of a drug and violent crime task force signs a written affidavit stating that the vehicle or vehicles for which the plates are being requested will be used only for official undercover work conducted by a drug and violent crime task force.
(g) The commissioner is authorized to issue twenty Class A license plates to the criminal investigation division of the department of tax and revenue for use by its investigators.
(h) The commissioner may issue a maximum of ten fifteen Class A license plates to the division of natural resources for use by conservation officers. The commissioner may issue a maximum of twenty Class A license plates to the office of the state fire marshal. The commissioner may issue an unlimited number of Class A plates to the division of protective services for its use. The commissioner shall designate the color and design of the registration plates to be displayed on the front and the rear of all other state-owned vehicles owned by the division of natural resources and operated by conservation officers.
(i) The commissioner is authorized to issue an unlimited number of Class A license plates to the commission on special investigations for state-owned vehicles used for official undercover work conducted by the commission on special investigations.
(j) No other registration plate may be issued for, or attached to, any state-owned vehicle.
(k) The commissioner of motor vehicles shall have a sufficient number of both front and rear plates produced to attach to all state-owned cars. The numbered registration plates for the vehicles shall start with the number "five hundred" and the commissioner shall issue consecutive numbers for all state-owned cars.
(l) It is the duty of each office, department, bureau, commission or institution furnished any vehicle to have plates as described herein in this section affixed thereto to the vehicle prior to the operation of the vehicle by any official or employee.
(m) Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than one hundred dollars. Magistrates shall have concurrent jurisdiction with circuit and criminal courts for the enforcement of this section.
 NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow for Class A motor vehicle registration plates for the Division of Protective Services. The bill also increases the number of Class A plates for the State Fire Marshal.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.