Florida Senate - 2026                              CS for SB 246
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Fiscal Policy; and Senators Gruters and
       Rodriguez
       
       
       
       
       594-02804-26                                           2026246c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to specialty license plates; amending
    3         s. 320.08056, F.S.; increasing the annual use fee for
    4         the Florida Wildflower license plate and providing a
    5         discount for owners purchasing the plate for more than
    6         a specified number of vehicles; amending s. 320.08058,
    7         F.S.; deleting a restriction on who may be issued the
    8         Fraternal Order of Police license plate; revising the
    9         distribution and use of annual use fees collected from
   10         sales of the Fraternal Order of Police license plate;
   11         directing the Department of Highway Safety and Motor
   12         Vehicles to develop specified specialty license
   13         plates; providing for distribution and use of fees
   14         collected from the sale of the plates; providing an
   15         effective date.
   16          
   17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   18  
   19         Section 1. Paragraph (p) of subsection (4) of section
   20  320.08056, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   21         320.08056 Specialty license plates.—
   22         (4) The following license plate annual use fees shall be
   23  collected for the appropriate specialty license plates:
   24         (p) Florida Wildflower license plate, $25, except that for
   25  an owner purchasing the specialty plate for more than 10
   26  vehicles registered to that owner, the annual use fee shall be
   27  $15 per plate.
   28         Section 2. Subsection (67) of section 320.08058, Florida
   29  Statutes, is amended, and subsections (136) through (140) are
   30  added to that section, to read:
   31         320.08058 Specialty license plates.—
   32         (67) FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE LICENSE PLATES.—
   33         (a)1. The department shall develop a Fraternal Order of
   34  Police license plate as provided in this section. The plate must
   35  bear the colors and design approved by the department. The word
   36  “Florida” must appear at the top of the plate, and the words
   37  “Fraternal Order of Police” must appear at the bottom of the
   38  plate.
   39         2. The department may issue the plate only to an applicant
   40  who submits a notarized letter from the Florida State Lodge of
   41  the Fraternal Order of Police stating that the applicant is a
   42  member of the lodge in good standing or a member of a lodge
   43  member’s family, together with other fees and documents required
   44  for a specialty plate.
   45         (b) The annual use fees shall be distributed to the Florida
   46  State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police Memorial
   47  Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit corporation under s. 501(c)(3) of
   48  the Internal Revenue Code. The which shall retain all proceeds
   49  until the startup costs to develop and establish the plate have
   50  been recovered. Thereafter, the proceeds shall be distributed to
   51  the Florida State Lodge Memorial foundation shall distribute the
   52  proceeds for use according to the foundation’s articles of
   53  incorporation of the Fraternal Order of Police and used as
   54  follows:
   55         1. A maximum of 10 percent of the proceeds may be used to
   56  promote and market the plate, to administer the license plate
   57  program, and to pay administrative costs directly associated
   58  with the state Fraternal Order of Police Law Enforcement
   59  Memorial.
   60         2. The remaining proceeds shall be used by the foundation
   61  to fund projects, programs, or events related to the memorial or
   62  to fund improvements, maintenance, or other support for the
   63  memorial.
   64         (136)ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP (UFC) LICENSE PLATES.—
   65         (a)The department shall develop an Ultimate Fighting
   66  Championship (UFC) license plate as provided in this section and
   67  s. 320.08053. The plate must bear the colors and design approved
   68  by the department. The word “Florida” must appear at the top of
   69  the plate, and the words “UFC Lives Here” must appear at the
   70  bottom of the plate.
   71         (b)The annual use fees from the sale of the plate must be
   72  distributed to the UFC Foundation, a nonprofit corporation under
   73  s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, which may use up to
   74  10 percent of the proceeds to promote and market the plate. The
   75  UFC Foundation shall use the remainder of the proceeds to
   76  support charities and nonprofits in this state that align with
   77  the foundation’s mission and goals, such as children’s
   78  hospitals, support for first responders and the military, and
   79  youth advocacy and mentorship, and to fund the development and
   80  operation of youth mentorship programs in partnership with local
   81  law enforcement agencies.
   82         (137) MIAMI NORTHWESTERN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION LICENSE
   83  PLATES.—
   84         (a) The department shall develop a Miami Northwestern
   85  Alumni Association license plate as provided in this section and
   86  s. 320.08053. The plate must bear the colors and design approved
   87  by the department. The word “Florida” must appear at the top of
   88  the plate, and the words “Miami Northwestern Alumni Association
   89  must appear at the bottom of the plate.
   90         (b) The annual use fees from the sale of the plate must be
   91  distributed to the Miami Northwestern Alumni Association, Inc.,
   92  which may use up to 10 percent of the fees for administrative
   93  costs and marketing of the plate. The balance of the fees must
   94  be used by the Miami Northwestern Alumni Association, Inc., to
   95  fund academic programs, athletic programs, and need-based
   96  scholarships for the benefit of Miami Northwestern Senior High
   97  School students and the Miami Northwestern Senior High School
   98  Performing and Visual Arts Center.
   99         (138)OUTSIDER LICENSE PLATES.—
  100         (a)The department shall develop an Outsider license plate
  101  as provided in this section and s. 320.08053. The plate must
  102  bear the colors and design approved by the department. The word
  103  “Florida” must appear at the top of the plate, and the word
  104  “OUTSIDER” must appear at the bottom of the plate.
  105         (b)The annual use fees from the sale of the plate must be
  106  distributed to the Hoober Brothers Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit
  107  corporation under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code,
  108  which may use up to 10 percent of the proceeds for
  109  administrative costs and marketing of the plate. The Hoober
  110  Brothers Foundation, Inc., shall use the remainder of the
  111  proceeds to create and restore iconic public destinations across
  112  this state.
  113         (139) ST. PETERSBURG COLLEGE LICENSE PLATES.—
  114         (a) The department shall develop a St. Petersburg College
  115  license plate as provided in this section and s. 320.08053. The
  116  plate must bear the colors and design approved by the
  117  department. The word “Florida” must appear at the top of the
  118  plate, and the words “St. Petersburg College” must appear at the
  119  bottom of the plate.
  120         (b) The annual use fees from the sale of the plate must be
  121  distributed to the St. Petersburg College Foundation, Inc., and
  122  allocated as follows:
  123         1. Ten percent may be used for administrative costs related
  124  to the promotion and marketing of the plate.
  125         2. Forty percent must be dedicated to funding student
  126  scholarships to ensure access to quality education for students
  127  in need.
  128         3. Fifty percent must be used to fund initiatives that
  129  embolden student success, particularly in emerging technologies
  130  and workforce development programs, to prepare students for
  131  high-demand careers and the future economy.
  132         (140) FIRST RESPONDERS RESILIENCY LICENSE PLATES.—
  133         (a)The department shall develop a First Responders
  134  Resiliency license plate as provided in this section and s.
  135  320.08053. The plate must bear the colors and design approved by
  136  the department. The word “Florida” must appear at the top of the
  137  plate, and the words “First Responders Resiliency” must appear
  138  at the bottom of the plate.
  139         (b)The annual use fees from the sale of the plate must be
  140  distributed to the First Responders Resiliency Foundation Corp,
  141  which may use up to 10 percent of the fees for administrative
  142  costs and marketing of the plate. The balance of the fees must
  143  be used by the First Responders Resiliency Foundation Corp to
  144  fund mental health services for first responders who do not
  145  qualify for benefits under s. 112.1815(5), to ensure that such
  146  first responders have access to certified mental health
  147  counselors when in crisis.
  148         Section 3. This act shall take effect October 1, 2026.