HB 1049

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to license plates; amending s. 320.08053,
3F.S.; revising requirements for establishing a specialty
4license plate; requiring submission of a sample plate;
5requiring a certain number of plates to be sold prior to
6seeking legislative approval; providing for collection of
7the use fee for the proposed plate in the local tax
8collector's office; providing for retention of presale
9amounts by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor
10Vehicles to offset costs; providing for refund of annual
11use fees in the event a proposed specialty license plate
12is not approved by law; requiring the department to adopt
13rules relating to design specifications for specialty
14license plates; amending s. 320.08056, F.S.; revising
15provisions for the issuance of specialty license plates;
16revising design requirements; revising the retention and
17distribution requirements for annual use fees; revising
18conditions and procedures for discontinuation of specialty
19license plates; amending s. 320.08062, F.S.; revising
20provisions for audits and attestations required of
21entities receiving specialty license plate annual use
22fees; requiring all state agencies and organizations
23receiving use fee proceeds to make annual attestations;
24providing for form and content of attestations; amending
25s. 320.20, F.S.; providing for a portion of license tax
26revenue to be deposited into the Highway Safety Operating
27Trust Fund for certain purposes; requiring the department,
28in cooperation with local tax collectors and the Prison
29Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises,
30Inc., to study the possibility of using direct-to-customer
31distribution; requiring an analysis of the impact of
32certain technologies; requiring the department to report
33its findings to the Legislature; providing an effective
34date.
35
36Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
37
38     Section 1.  Section 320.08053, Florida Statutes, is amended
39to read:
40     320.08053  Requirements for requests to establish specialty
41license plates.--
42     (1)  An organization that seeks authorization to establish
43a new specialty license plate for which an annual use fee is to
44be charged must submit to the department:
45     (a)  Submit a written request to the department for the
46particular specialty license plate being sought, describing the
47proposed specialty license plate in specific general terms,
48including a sample plate as it will appear in final form and
49conforming to the specifications set by the department and this
50chapter.
51     (b)  Presell 15,000 specialty license plates within 1 year
52after submission of the request as a condition for seeking
53legislative authorization of the specialty license plate. The
54annual use fee for the proposed specialty license plate shall be
55collected in any of the local tax collectors' offices. Either
56the specialty license plate requesting organization or the
57prospective license plate purchaser may prepay the annual use
58fee. The results of a scientific sample survey of Florida motor
59vehicle owners that indicates at least 15,000 motor vehicle
60owners intend to purchase the proposed specialty license plate
61at the increased cost. The sample survey of registered motor
62vehicle owners must be performed independently of the requesting
63organization by an organization that conducts similar sample
64surveys as a normal course of business. Prior to conducting a
65sample survey for the purposes of this section, a requesting
66organization must obtain a determination from the department
67that the organization selected to conduct the survey performs
68similar surveys as a normal course of business and is
69independent of the requesting organization.
70     (c)  An application fee, not to exceed $60,000, to defray
71the department's cost for reviewing the application and
72developing the specialty license plate, if authorized. State
73funds may not be used to pay the application fee, except for
74collegiate specialty license plates authorized in s.
75320.08058(3) and (13). The specialty license plate application
76provisions of this act shall not apply to any organization which
77has requested and received the required forms for obtaining a
78specialty license plate authorization from the Department of
79Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, has opened a bank account for
80the funds collected for the specialty license tag and has made
81deposits to such an account, and has obtained signatures toward
82completing the requirements for the specialty license tag. All
83applications requested on or after the effective date of this
84act must meet the requirements of this act.
85     (c)(d)  Submit a marketing strategy to the department
86outlining short-term and long-term marketing plans for the
87requested specialty license plate and a financial analysis
88outlining the anticipated revenues and the planned expenditures
89of the revenues to be derived from the sale of the requested
90specialty license plates.
91
92If, at least 90 days before the convening of the next regular
93session of the Legislature, 15,000 specialty license plates are
94presold and all other prequalification requirements are met, the
95department shall notify the organization that it is eligible to
96seek legislative authorization of the specialty license plate.
97The information required under this subsection must be submitted
98to the department at least 90 days before the convening of the
99next regular session of the Legislature.
100     (2)  After 15,000 specialty license plates have been
101presold, the department may retain up to $60,000 of the presale
102amounts collected to defray the department's cost for reviewing
103the request and developing the specialty license plate.
104     (3)(2)  If the specialty license plate requested by the
105organization is approved by law, the organization must submit
106the proposed art design for the specialty license plate to the
107department, in a form prescribed by the department, as soon as
108practicable, but no later than 60 days after the act approving
109the specialty license plate becomes a law. If the specialty
110license plate requested by the organization is not approved by
111the Legislature, the presale amounts application fee shall be
112credited toward the future registration of the registered motor
113vehicle owner who prepaid the annual use fee for the requested
114specialty license plate. If the registered motor vehicle owner
115does not conduct a future registration transaction within 1 year
116following the expiration of that owner's prior registration, the
117annual use fee shall be refunded by the department to the
118requesting organization or the prospective purchaser who
119submitted the presale payment.
120     (4)  The department shall adopt rules providing viewpoint-
121neutral specifications for the design of specialty license
122plates that promote or enhance the readability of all specialty
123license plates and that discourage counterfeiting. The rules
124shall provide uniform specifications requiring inclusion of the
125word "Florida" in the same place on each specialty license
126plate, in such a size and location that it is clearly
127identifiable on each specialty license plate when mounted on a
128vehicle, and shall provide specifications for the size and
129location of any words or logos appearing on specialty license
130plates.
131     Section 2.  Subsections (6), (7), and (8) of section
132320.08056, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
133     320.08056  Specialty license plates.--
134     (6)  Specialty license plates must bear the design required
135by law for the appropriate specialty license plate, and the
136designs and colors must conform to the department's design
137specifications be approved by the department. In addition to a
138design, the specialty license plates may bear the imprint of
139numerals from 1 to 999, inclusive, capital letters "A" through
140"Z," or a combination thereof. The department shall determine
141the maximum number of characters, including both numerals and
142letters. All specialty license plates must be otherwise of the
143same material and size as standard license plates issued for any
144registration period. In small letters, the word "Florida" must
145appear at either the bottom or top of the plate, depending upon
146the design. In addition, A specialty license plate may bear an
147appropriate slogan, emblem, or logo in a size and placement that
148conform to the department's design specifications.
149     (7)  The department shall annually retain from the first
150proceeds derived from the annual use fees collected an amount
151sufficient to defray each specialty plate's pro rata share of
152the department's costs directly related to issuing the specialty
153plate. Such costs shall include distribution costs, direct costs
154to the department, costs associated with reviewing each
155organization's compliance with audit and attestation
156requirements of s. 320.08062, and any applicable increased costs
157of manufacturing the specialty license plate. Any cost increase
158to the department related to actual cost of the plate, including
159a reasonable vendor profit, shall be verified by the Department
160of Management Services. The balance of the proceeds from the
161annual use fees collected for that specialty license plate shall
162be distributed as provided by law.
163     (8)(a)  The department shall issue a discontinuation
164warning for a must discontinue the issuance of an approved
165specialty license plate if, after 2 years of sales, the number
166of valid plates for that particular specialty license plate is
167less than 8,000. If the number of valid plates is less than
1688,000 12 months after the date on the discontinuation warning,
169the department shall discontinue the issuance of that specialty
170license plate.:
171     1.  Less than 8,000 plates, including annual renewals, are
172issued for that specialty license plate by the end of the 5th
173year of sales.
174     2.  Less than 8,000 plates, including annual renewals, are
175issued for that specialty license plate during any subsequent 5-
176year period.
177     (b)  The department is authorized to discontinue the
178issuance of a specialty license plate and distribution of
179associated annual use fee proceeds if the organization no longer
180exists, if the organization has stopped providing services that
181are authorized to be funded from the annual use fee proceeds, or
182pursuant to an organizational recipient's request. Organizations
183are required to notify the department immediately to stop all
184warrants for plate sales if any of the conditions in this
185section exist, and must meet the requirements of s. 320.08062
186for any period of operation during a fiscal year.
187     (c)  The requirements of paragraph (a) shall not apply to
188collegiate specialty license plates authorized in s.
189320.08058(3), (13), (21), and (26).
190     Section 3.  Subsection (1) of section 320.08062, Florida
191Statutes, is amended to read:
192     320.08062  Audits and attestations required; annual use
193fees of specialty license plates.--
194     (1)(a)  All organizations and state agencies that receive
195annual use fee proceeds from the department are responsible for
196ensuring that proceeds are used in accordance with ss. 320.08056
197and 320.08058 and shall annually attest, under penalties of
198perjury, that such proceeds were used in compliance with such
199sections. The attestation shall be made annually in a form and
200format determined by the department, which shall include, at a
201minimum, identification of all revenue received by the agency or
202organization from sales of the specialty license plate and a
203categorical list of expenditures.
204     (b)  Any organization not subject to audit pursuant to s.
205215.97 shall annually attest, under penalties of perjury, that
206such proceeds were used in compliance with ss. 320.08056 and
207320.08058. The attestation shall be made annually in a form and
208format determined by the department.
209     (b)(c)  Any organization subject to audit pursuant to s.
210215.97 shall submit an audit report in accordance with rules
211promulgated by the Auditor General in addition to the
212attestation required under paragraph (a). The annual attestation
213shall be submitted to the department for review within 9 months
214after the end of the organization's fiscal year.
215     Section 4.  Subsection (1) of section 320.20, Florida
216Statutes, is amended to read:
217     320.20  Disposition of license tax moneys.--The revenue
218derived from the registration of motor vehicles, including any
219delinquent fees and excluding those revenues collected and
220distributed under the provisions of s. 320.081, must be
221distributed monthly, as collected, as follows:
222     (1)(a)  The first proceeds, to the extent necessary to
223comply with the provisions of s. 18, Art. XII of the State
224Constitution of 1885, as adopted by s. 9(d), Art. XII, 1968
225revised constitution, and the additional provisions of s. 9(d)
226and s. 1010.57, must be deposited in the district Capital Outlay
227and Debt Service School Trust Fund.
228     (b)  After the first proceeds are deposited pursuant to
229paragraph (a), $1 of the license tax payment for each
230registration or renewal of registration provided for in s.
231320.08 shall be deposited into the Highway Safety Operating
232Trust Fund and shall be used to support state law enforcement
233officer recruitment and retention salary programs.
234     Section 5.  The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
235Vehicles shall, in cooperation with representatives of the local
236tax collectors and with Prison Rehabilitative Industries and
237Diversified Enterprises, Inc., at Union Correctional Facility,
238study the operational and economic feasibility of direct-to-
239customer delivery of specialty license plates. The study shall
240include, but not be limited to, an analysis of the potential
241operational and economic impact of various manufacturing,
242inventory control, and product distribution technologies on the
243specialty license plate program. The department shall report its
244findings to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
245House of Representatives no later than December 31, 2004.
246     Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.