BILL REQ. #: H-1613.1
State of Washington | 63rd Legislature | 2013 Regular Session |
Read first time 02/21/13. Referred to Committee on Transportation.
AN ACT Relating to front license plates; and amending RCW 46.16A.200.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 46.16A.200 and 2011 c 171 s 46 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) Design. All license plates may be obtained by the director
from the metal working plant of a state correctional facility or from
any source in accordance with existing state of Washington purchasing
procedures. License plates:
(a) May vary in background, color, and design;
(b) Must be legible and clearly identifiable as a Washington state
license plate;
(c) Must designate the name of the state of Washington without
abbreviation;
(d) Must be treated with fully reflectorized materials designed to
increase visibility and legibility at night;
(e) Must be of a size and color and show the registration period as
determined by the director; and
(f) Before July 1, 2010, may display a symbol or artwork approved
by the former special license plate review board and the legislature.
Beginning July 1, 2010, special license plate series approved by the
department and enacted into law by the legislature may display a symbol
or artwork approved by the department.
(2) Exceptions to reflectorized materials. License plates issued
before January 1, 1968, are not required to be treated with
reflectorized materials.
(3) Dealer license plates. License plates issued to a dealer must
contain an indication that the license plates have been issued to a
vehicle dealer.
(4)(a) Furnished. The director shall furnish to all persons making
satisfactory application for a vehicle registration:
(i) Two identical license plates each containing the license plate
number; or
(ii) One license plate if the vehicle is a trailer, semitrailer,
camper, moped, collector vehicle, horseless carriage, or motorcycle.
(b) The director may adopt types of license plates to be used as
long as the license plates are legible.
(5)(a) Display. License plates must be:
(i) Attached conspicuously at the front and rear of each vehicle if
two license plates have been issued;
(ii) Attached to the rear of the vehicle if one license plate has
been issued;
(iii) Kept clean and be able to be plainly seen and read at all
times; and
(iv) Attached in a horizontal position at a distance of not more
than four feet from the ground.
(b) The Washington state patrol may grant exceptions to this
subsection if the body construction of the vehicle makes compliance
with this section impossible.
(c) The department must grant an exception to (a)(i) of this
subsection to a registered owner if the registered owner pays a two
hundred dollar administrative fee to obtain a single license plate to
be attached to the rear of the motor vehicle. The fee must be
deposited in the motor vehicle fund.
(6) Change of license classification. A person who has altered a
vehicle that makes the current license plate or plates invalid for the
vehicle's use shall:
(a) Surrender the current license plate or plates to the
department, county auditor or other agent, or subagent appointed by the
director;
(b) Apply for a new license plate or plates; and
(c) Pay a change of classification fee required under RCW
46.17.310.
(7) Unlawful acts. It is unlawful to:
(a) Display a license plate or plates on the front or rear of any
vehicle that were not issued by the director for the vehicle;
(b) Display a license plate or plates on any vehicle that have been
changed, altered, or disfigured, or have become illegible;
(c) Use holders, frames, or other materials that change, alter, or
make a license plate or plates illegible. License plate frames may be
used on license plates only if the frames do not obscure license tabs
or identifying letters or numbers on the plates and the license plates
can be plainly seen and read at all times;
(d) Operate a vehicle unless a valid license plate or plates are
attached as required under this section;
(e) Transfer a license plate or plates issued under this chapter
between two or more vehicles without first making application to
transfer the license plates. A violation of this subsection (7)(e) is
a traffic infraction subject to a fine not to exceed five hundred
dollars. Any law enforcement agency that determines that a license
plate or plates have been transferred between two or more vehicles
shall confiscate the license plate or plates and return them to the
department for nullification along with full details of the reasons for
confiscation. Each vehicle identified in the transfer will be issued
a new license plate or plates upon application by the owner or owners
and the payment of full fees and taxes; or
(f) Fail, neglect, or refuse to endorse the registration
certificate and deliver the license plate or plates to the purchaser or
transferee of the vehicle, except as authorized under this section.
(8) Transfer. (a) Standard issue license plates follow the vehicle
when ownership of the vehicle changes unless the registered owner
wishes to retain the license plates and transfer them to a replacement
vehicle of the same use. A registered owner wishing to keep standard
issue license plates shall pay the license plate transfer fee required
under RCW 46.17.200(1)(c) when applying for license plate transfer.
(b) Special license plates and personalized license plates may be
treated in the same manner as described in (a) of this subsection
unless otherwise limited by law.
(c) License plates issued to the state or any county, city, town,
school district, or other political subdivision entitled to exemption
as provided by law may be treated in the same manner as described in
(a) of this subsection.
(9) Replacement. (a) An owner or the owner's authorized
representative shall apply for a replacement license plate or plates if
the current license plate or plates assigned to the vehicle have been
lost, defaced, or destroyed, or if one or both plates have become so
illegible or are in such a condition as to be difficult to distinguish.
An owner or the owner's authorized representative may apply for a
replacement license plate or plates at any time the owner chooses.
(b) The application for a replacement license plate or plates must:
(i) Be on a form furnished or approved by the director; and
(ii) Be accompanied by the fee required under RCW 46.17.200(1)(a).
(c) The department shall not require the payment of any fee to
replace a license plate or plates for vehicles owned, rented, or leased
by foreign countries or international bodies to which the United States
government is a signatory by treaty.
(10) Periodic replacement. License plates must be replaced
periodically to ensure maximum legibility and reflectivity. The
department shall:
(a) Use empirical studies documenting the longevity of the
reflective materials used to make license plates;
(b) Determine how frequently license plates must be replaced; and
(c) Offer to owners the option of retaining the current license
plate number when obtaining replacement license plates for the fee
required in RCW 46.17.200(1)(b).
(11) Periodic replacement -- Exceptions. The following license
plates are not required to be periodically replaced as required in
subsection (10) of this section:
(a) Horseless carriage license plates issued under RCW 46.18.255
before January 1, 1987;
(b) Congressional Medal of Honor license plates issued under RCW
46.18.230;
(c) License plates for commercial motor vehicles with a gross
weight greater than twenty-six thousand pounds.
(12) Rules. The department may adopt rules to implement this
section.
(13) Tabs or emblems. The director may issue tabs or emblems to be
attached to license plates or elsewhere on the vehicle to signify
initial registration and renewals. Renewals become effective when tabs
or emblems have been issued and properly displayed on license plates.