HB2127 - 572R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 28-2351, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-2351. License plate provided; design

A. Notwithstanding any other law, the department shall provide to every owner one license plate for each vehicle registered. At the request of the owner and on payment of a fee in an amount prescribed by the director by rule, the department shall provide one additional license plate for a vehicle for which a special plate is requested pursuant to this chapter.

B. The license plate shall display the number assigned to the vehicle and to the owner of the vehicle and the name of this state, which may be abbreviated. The director shall coat the license plate with a reflective material that is consistent with the determination of the department regarding the color and design of license plates and special plates. The director shall design the license plate and the letters and numerals on the license plate to be of sufficient size to be plainly readable during daylight from a distance of one hundred feet. In addition to the standard license plate issued for a trailer before August 12, 2005, the director shall issue a license plate for trailers that has a design that is similar to the standard size license plate for trailers but that is the same size as the license plate for motorcycles. The trailer owner shall notify the department which size license plate the owner wants for the trailer.

C. In addition to the requirements prescribed in subsection B of this section, for all license plates, including all special plates, that are designed or redesigned on or after September 24, 2022:

1. The background color of the license plate shall contrast significantly with the color of the letters and numerals on the license plate and with the name of this state on the license plate.

2. The name of this state shall appear on the license plate in capital letters in sans serif font and be three-fourths of an inch in height.

D. Notwithstanding any other law, the department shall not contract with a nongovernmental entity to purchase or secure reflective material for the plates issued by the department unless the department has made a reasonable effort to secure qualified bids or proposals from as many individual responsible respondents as possible.

E. The department shall determine the color and design of the license plate subject to the requirements prescribed by subsections B and C of this section. All plates issued by the department, except the plates that are issued pursuant to sections 28-2404, 28-2412, 28-2413, 28-2414, 28-2416, 28-2416.01, 28-2417 through 28-2470.39, 28-2472, 28-2473, 28-2474, 28-2475, 28-2476, 28-2477 and 28-4533 and article 14 of this chapter, shall be the same color as and similar in design to the license plate as determined by the department.

F. A passenger motor vehicle that is rented without a driver shall receive the same type of license plate as is issued for a private passenger motor vehicle. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 28-2403, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-2403. Special plates; transfers; violation; classification

A. Except as otherwise provided in this article, the department shall issue or renew special plates in lieu of the regular license plates pursuant to the following conditions and procedures and only if the requirements prescribed by this article for the requested special plates are met:

1. Except as provided in sections 28-2416 and 28-2416.01, a person who is the registered owner of a vehicle registered with the department or who applies for an original or renewal registration of a vehicle may submit to the department a completed application form as prescribed by the department with the fee prescribed by section 28-2402 for special plates in addition to the registration fee prescribed by section 28-2003.

2. Except for plates issued pursuant to sections 28-2404, 28-2412, 28-2413, 28-2414, 28-2416, 28-2416.01, 28-2417 through 28-2470.39, 28-2472, 28-2473, 28-2474, 28-2475, and 28-2476 and 28-2477 and article 14 of this chapter, the special plates shall be the same color as and similar to the design of the regular license plates that is determined by the department.

3. Except as provided in section 28-2416, the department shall issue special plates only to the owner or lessee of a vehicle that is currently registered, including any vehicle that has a declared gross weight, as defined in section 28-5431, of twenty-six thousand pounds or less.

4. Except as provided in sections 28-2416 and 28-2416.01, the department shall charge the fee prescribed by section 28-2402 for each annual renewal of special plates in addition to the registration fee prescribed by section 28-2003.

B. Except as provided in sections 28-2416 and 28-2416.01, on notification to the department and on payment of the transfer fee prescribed by section 28-2402, a person who is issued special plates may transfer the special plates to another vehicle the person owns or leases. Persons who are issued special plates for hearing impaired persons pursuant to section 28-2408 and international symbol of access special plates pursuant to section 28-2409 are exempt from the transfer fee. If a person who is issued special plates sells, trades or otherwise releases ownership of the vehicle on which the plates have been displayed, the person shall immediately report the transfer of the plates to the department or the person shall surrender the plates to the department as prescribed by the director. It is unlawful for a person to whom the plates have been issued to knowingly allow them to be displayed on a vehicle except the vehicle authorized by the department.

C. The special plates shall be affixed to the vehicle for which registration is sought in lieu of the regular license plates.

D. A person is guilty of a class 3 misdemeanor who:

1. Violates subsection B of this section.

2. Fraudulently gives false or fictitious information in the application for or renewal of special plates or placards issued pursuant to this article.

3. Conceals a material fact or otherwise commits fraud in the application for or renewal of special plates or placards issued pursuant to this article. END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Title 28, chapter 7, article 13, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 28-2477, to read:

START_STATUTE28-2477. Bronze star medal license plates; fees

A. The department shall issue distinctive license plates to:

1. A person who submits satisfactory proof to the department that the person is a veteran and a bona fide bronze star medal recipient.

2. An immediate family member of a person who has been issued a license plate pursuant to this section.

b. For each original license plate issued pursuant to this section, the department shall collect a fee of $25 in addition to the registration fee required by section 28-2003. For each annual renewal of license plates issued pursuant to this section, the department shall charge a fee of $5 in addition to the registration fee required by section 28-2003. The department shall deposit, pursuant to sections 35-146 and 35-147, the $25 fee as a donation in the veterans' donations fund established by section 41-608. END_STATUTE

Sec. 4. Section 28-6501, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-6501. Definition of highway user revenues

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires or except as otherwise provided by statute, "highway user revenues" means all monies received in this state from licenses, taxes, penalties, interest and fees authorized by the following:

1. Chapters 2, 7, 8 and 15 of this title, except for:

(a) The special plate administration fees prescribed in sections 28-2404, 28-2407, 28-2412 through 28-2470.39 and 28-2514.

(b) The donations prescribed in sections 28-2404, 28-2407, 28-2412 through 28-2415, 28-2417 through 28-2470.39, 28-2473, 28-2474, 28-2475, and 28-2476 and 28-2477.

2. Section 28-1177.

3. Chapters 10 and 11 of this title.

4. Chapter 16, articles 1, 2 and 4 of this title, except as provided in sections 28-5926 and 28-5927. END_STATUTE

Sec. 5. Section 41-608, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE41-608. Veterans' donations fund; transfer; grants

A. The veterans' donations fund is established consisting of monies, gifts and contributions donated to the department and monies deposited pursuant to sections 28-2414, 28-2428, 28-2431, 28-2447, 28-2454, 28-2470.10, 28-2473, 28-2474, 28-2475, 28-2476, 28-2477 and 43-620. The department shall administer the fund. Monies in the fund are continuously appropriated. The monies in the fund are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations. The department shall annually transfer fifteen percent of all revenues received by the department that are deposited in the veterans' donations fund pursuant to this section to the subaccount established pursuant to section 41-608.01 in the state homes for veterans trust fund. The department shall adopt rules or policies for grants of less than $5,000 that encourage as much competition as practicable.

B. The director or the director's designee may solicit and receive donations, including in-kind donations, from the public for veterans. The director shall deposit, pursuant to sections 35-146 and 35-147, the monetary donations in the veterans' donations fund. Monies in the fund are subject to state auditing procedures. Except for monies deposited pursuant to sections 28-2431 and 28-2447, the donations may be used for the benefit of the veterans within this state as grants, subject to chapter 24 of this title, if applicable.

C. The director shall establish a separate subaccount in the veterans' donations fund for the deposit of monies received pursuant to section 28-2431, subsection C. The monies in the subaccount shall be used for the construction and maintenance of the enduring freedom memorial authorized pursuant to section 41-1363 for placement in Wesley Bolin Plaza.

D. The director shall establish a separate subaccount in the veterans' donations fund for the deposit of monies received pursuant to section 28-2447, subsection F. The monies in the subaccount shall be used for the benefit of women veterans in this state, including providing shelter to homeless women veterans as grants, subject to chapter 24 of this title, if applicable.

E. The director shall establish a separate subaccount in the veterans' donations fund for the deposit of monies received pursuant to section 28-2454, subsection C. The first $32,000 in the subaccount shall be reimbursed to the person that provides the $32,000 pursuant to section 28-2454, subsection A. The director shall annually allocate monies from the subaccount to a foundation that is qualified under section 501(c)(3) of the United States internal revenue code for federal income tax purposes and that is the nation's oldest and largest provider of need-based scholarships to children of United States military members. The foundation must:

1. Have been in existence for at least fifty-two years.

2. Have provided more than thirty-three thousand scholarships that are valued at almost $90,000,000.

3. Have a mission that includes honoring marines and educating their children.

4. Award scholarship monies to children of marines and navy corpsmen who were killed or wounded in combat or who have demonstrated financial need.

F. The director shall establish a separate subaccount in the veterans' donations fund for the deposit of monies received pursuant to section 28-2470.10, subsection C. The first $32,000 in the subaccount shall be reimbursed to the person that provides the $32,000 pursuant to section 28-2470.10, subsection A. The director shall annually allocate monies from the subaccount to a foundation that is qualified under section 501(c)(3) of the United States internal revenue code for federal income tax purposes. The foundation must:

1. Have been in existence for at least twenty years.

2. Have a mission that includes providing college scholarships to:

(a) The sons and daughters of those who have served the United States honorably as soldiers in the United States army.

(b) The spouses of enlisted soldiers on active duty in the United States army.

3. Envision increasing its fundraising and visibility to encourage more applicants to apply for scholarships and to provide larger scholarships to an increasing number of deserving applicants to both:

(a) Reward army families for the sacrifices that army soldiers make every day to serve their nation.

(b) Help the spouses and children of army soldiers become leaders in society.

4. Award scholarship monies to:

(a) Children of former United States army members who were killed while serving in the United States army or who received an honorable discharge or medical discharge.

(b) Children of United States army members in good standing serving in regular active duty, active duty reserve or active duty national guard.

(c) Spouses of United States army members in good standing serving in regular active duty, active duty reserve or active duty national guard.

G. The director shall inventory and account for the use of any tangible personal property donated to the fund.

H. The department may use up to $150,000 from the veterans' donations fund each fiscal year to administer this section. In addition to any other full-time equivalent positions authorized by law, the department is authorized two full-time equivalent positions to administer this section.

I. On notice from the director, the state treasurer shall invest and divest monies in the fund as provided by section 35-313, and monies earned from investment shall be credited to the fund. END_STATUTE