AN ACT Relating to institutions of higher
education collegiate license plates; amending RCW 46.16.301, 46.16.313,
46.16.332, and 46.16.381; adding a new section to chapter 46.04 RCW; adding a
new section to chapter 46.16 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28B.10 RCW;
creating a new section; repealing RCW 46.16.323; and prescribing penalties.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A
new section is added to chapter 46.04 RCW to read as follows:
"Collegiate license plates" means
license plates that display a depiction of the name and mascot or symbol of a
state university, regional university, or state college as defined in RCW 28B.10.016.
Sec. 2.
RCW 46.16.301 and 1990 c 250 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The department may create, design, and
issue special license plates((, upon terms and conditions as may be
established by the department,)) that may be used in lieu of regular or
personalized license plates ((upon)) for motor vehicles required
to display two motor vehicle license plates, excluding vehicles registered
under chapter 46.87 RCW, upon terms and conditions established by the
department. The special plates may:
(a) Denote the age or type of vehicle;
or ((may))
(b) Denote special activities or
interests((,)); or
(c) Denote the status, or contribution
or sacrifice for the United States, the state of Washington, or the citizens of
the state of Washington, of a registered owner of that vehicle; or
(d) Display a depiction of the name and
mascot or symbol of a state university, regional university, or state college
as defined in RCW 28B.10.016.
(2) The department has the sole discretion to
determine whether or not to create, design, or issue any series of special
license plates and whether any ((activity,)) interest or status((,
contribution, or sacrifice)) merits the issuance of a series of special
license plates. In making this determination, the department shall consider
whether or not an ((activity or)) interest ((proposed)) or
status contributes or has contributed significantly to the public health,
safety, or welfare of the citizens of the United States or of this state or to
their significant benefit, or whether the ((activity,)) interest((,
contribution, or sacrifice)) or status is recognized by the United
States, this state, or other states, in other settings or contexts. The
department may also consider the potential number of persons who may be
eligible for the plates and the cost and efficiency of producing limited
numbers of the plates. The design of a special license plate shall conform to
all requirements for plates for the type of vehicle for which it is issued, as
provided elsewhere in this chapter.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A
new section is added to chapter 46.16 RCW to read as follows:
Effective January 1, 1995, a state university,
regional university, or state college as defined in RCW 28B.10.016 may apply to
the department, in a form prescribed by the department, and request the
department to issue a series of collegiate license plates depicting the name
and mascot or symbol of the college or university, as submitted and approved
for use by the requesting institution.
Sec. 4.
RCW 46.16.313 and 1990 c 250 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The department may establish a fee
for ((the issuance of)) each type of special license ((plate or))
plates issued under RCW 46.16.301(1) (a), (b), or (c) in an amount
calculated to offset the cost of production of the special license ((plate
or)) plates and the administration of this program. The fee shall not
exceed thirty-five dollars and is in addition to all other fees required to
register and license the vehicle for which the plates have been requested. All
such additional special license plate fees collected by the department shall be
deposited in the state treasury and credited to the motor vehicle fund.
(2) In addition to all fees and taxes
required to be paid upon application, registration, and renewal registration of
a motor vehicle, the holder of a collegiate license plate shall pay a fee of
thirty dollars. The department shall deduct an amount not to exceed two
dollars of each fee collected under this subsection for administration and
collection expenses incurred by it. The remaining proceeds, minus the cost of
plate production, shall be remitted to the custody of the state treasurer with
a proper identifying detailed report. The state treasurer shall credit the
funds to the appropriate collegiate license plate fund as provided in section 7
of this act.
Sec. 5.
RCW 46.16.332 and 1990 c 250 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The director may adopt fees to be charged
by the department for emblems issued by the department under RCW 46.16.319 ((and
46.16.323)).
(2) The fee for each remembrance emblem issued
under RCW 46.16.319 shall be in an amount sufficient to offset the costs of
production of remembrance emblems and the administration of that program by the
department plus an amount for use by the department of veterans affairs, not to
exceed a total fee of twenty-five dollars per emblem. ((The fee for each
special vehicle license plate emblem issued under RCW 46.16.323 shall be an
amount sufficient to offset the cost of production of the emblems and of
administering the special vehicle license plate emblem program.))
(3) The veterans' emblem account is created in
the custody of the state treasurer. All receipts by the department from the
issuance of remembrance emblems under RCW 46.16.319 shall be deposited into
this fund. Expenditures from the fund may be used only for the costs of
production of remembrance emblems and administration of the program by the
department of licensing, with the balance used only by the department of
veterans affairs for projects that pay tribute to those living veterans and to
those who have died defending freedom in our nation's wars and conflicts and
for the upkeep and operations of existing memorials, as well as for planning,
acquiring land for, and constructing future memorials. Only the director of
licensing, the director of veterans affairs, or their designees may authorize
expenditures from the fund. The fund is subject to allotment procedures under
chapter 43.88 RCW, but no appropriation is required for expenditures.
(((4) The special vehicle license plate
emblem account is established in the state treasury. Fees collected by the
department for emblems issued under RCW 46.16.323 shall be deposited into the
special vehicle license plate emblem account to be used only to offset the
costs of administering the special vehicle license plate emblem program.))
Sec. 6.
RCW 46.16.381 and 1993 c 106 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The director shall grant special parking
privileges to any person who has a disability that limits or impairs the
ability to walk and meets one of the following criteria, as determined by a
licensed physician:
(a) Cannot walk two hundred feet without
stopping to rest;
(b) Is severely limited in ability to walk due
to arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition;
(c) Is so severely disabled, that the person
cannot walk without the use of or assistance from a brace, cane, another
person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device;
(d) Uses portable oxygen;
(e) Is restricted by lung disease to such an
extent that forced expiratory respiratory volume, when measured by spirometry
is less than one liter per second or the arterial oxygen tension is less than
sixty mm/hg on room air at rest;
(f) Impairment by cardiovascular disease or
cardiac condition to the extent that the person's functional limitations are
classified as class III or IV under standards accepted by the American Heart
Association; or
(g) Has a disability resulting from an acute
sensitivity to automobile emissions which limits or impairs the ability to
walk. The personal physician of the applicant shall document that the
disability is comparable in severity to the others listed in this subsection.
(2) Persons who qualify for special parking
privileges are entitled to receive from the department of licensing a removable
windshield placard bearing the international symbol of access. The department
shall design the placard to be displayed when the vehicle is parked by suspending
it from the rearview mirror, or in the absence of a rearview mirror the card
may be displayed on the dashboard of any vehicle used to transport the disabled
person. Instead of regular motor vehicle license plates, disabled persons are
entitled to receive special license plates bearing the international symbol of
access for one vehicle registered in the disabled person's name. Disabled
persons who are not issued the special license plates are entitled to receive a
second special placard. Persons who have been issued the parking privileges
and who are using a vehicle or are riding in a vehicle displaying the special
license plates or placard may park in places reserved for mobility disabled
persons. The director shall adopt rules providing for the issuance of special
placards and license plates to public transportation authorities, nursing homes
licensed under chapter 18.51 RCW, boarding homes licensed under chapter 18.20
RCW, senior citizen centers, ((and)) private nonprofit agencies as
defined in chapter 24.03 RCW, and vehicles registered with the department as
cabulances that regularly transport disabled persons who have been
determined eligible for special parking privileges provided under this
section. The director may issue special license plates for a vehicle
registered in the name of the public transportation authority, nursing home,
boarding homes, senior citizen center, ((or)) private nonprofit agency,
or cabulance service if the vehicle is primarily used to transport persons
with disabilities described in this section. Public transportation
authorities, nursing homes, boarding homes, senior citizen centers, ((and))
private nonprofit agencies, and cabulance services are responsible for
insuring that the special placards and license plates are not used improperly
and are responsible for all fines and penalties for improper use.
(3) Whenever the disabled person transfers or
assigns his or her interest in the vehicle, the special license plates shall be
removed from the motor vehicle. If another vehicle is acquired by the disabled
person and the vehicle owner qualifies for a special plate, the plate shall be
attached to the vehicle, and the director shall be immediately notified of the
transfer of the plate. If another vehicle is not acquired by the disabled
person, the removed plate shall be immediately surrendered to the director.
(4) The special license plate shall be renewed
in the same manner and at the time required for the renewal of regular motor
vehicle license plates under this chapter. No special license plate may be
issued to a person who is temporarily disabled. A person who has a condition
expected to improve within six months may be issued a temporary placard for a
period not to exceed six months. The director may issue a second temporary
placard during that period if requested by the person who is temporarily
disabled. If the condition exists after six months a new temporary placard
shall be issued upon receipt of a new certification from the disabled person's
physician. The parking placard of a disabled person shall be renewed, when
required by the director, by satisfactory proof of the right to continued use
of the privileges.
(5) Additional fees shall not be charged for
the issuance of the special placards. No additional fee may be charged for the
issuance of the special license plates except the regular motor vehicle
registration fee and any other fees and taxes required to be paid upon
registration of a motor vehicle.
(6) Any unauthorized use of the special placard
or the special license plate is a misdemeanor.
(7) It is a traffic infraction, with a monetary
penalty of fifty dollars for any person to park a vehicle in a parking place
provided on private property without charge or on public property reserved for
physically disabled persons without a special license plate or placard. If a
person is charged with a violation, the person shall not be determined to have
committed an infraction if the person produces in court or before the court
appearance the special license plate or placard required under this section. A
local jurisdiction providing on-street parking places reserved for physically
disabled persons may impose by ordinance time restrictions on the use of these
parking places.
(8) The portion of a penalty imposed under
subsection (7) of this section that is retained by a local jurisdiction under
RCW 3.46.120, 3.50.100, 3.62.020, 3.62.040, or 35.20.220 shall be used by that
local jurisdiction exclusively for law enforcement. The court may also impose
an additional penalty sufficient to reimburse the local jurisdiction for any
costs it may have incurred in removal and storage of the improperly parked
vehicle.
(9) It is a misdemeanor for any person to
willfully obtain a special license plate or placard in a manner other than that
established under this section.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. A
new section is added to chapter 28B.10 RCW to read as follows:
A collegiate license plate fund is established
in the custody of the state treasurer for each college or university with a
collegiate license plate program approved by the department under section 3 of
this act. All receipts from collegiate license plates authorized under RCW
46.16.301 shall be deposited in the appropriate local college or university
nonappropriated, nonallotted fund. Expenditures from the funds may be used
only for student scholarships. Only the president of the college or university
or the president's designee may authorize expenditures from the fund.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. By
January 1, 1996, the department of licensing shall report to the legislative
transportation committee regarding the number of colleges or universities
issued a collegiate license plate series, and the total number of collegiate
plates issued for each participating college or university.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 9.
RCW 46.16.323 and 1990 c 250 s 7 are each repealed.
