HF 2356 (LSB 6150YH (2) 83)

HOUSE FILE 2356

BY  GAYMAN

A BILL FOR

An Act authorizing a special volunteer Iowa motor vehicle registration plate, establishing fees, creating a volunteer Iowa license fee fund, and making appropriations.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  15H.7  Volunteer Iowa license fee fund.
   1.  A volunteer Iowa license fee fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the Iowa commission on volunteer service. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, interest or earnings on moneys in the volunteer Iowa license fee fund shall be credited to the volunteer Iowa license fee fund. The fund shall include the fees credited by the treasurer of state from the sale of special volunteer Iowa motor vehicle registration plates pursuant to section 321.34, subsection 25, paragraph “f”. Moneys in the fund are appropriated to the commission to be distributed to eligible recipients. The commission shall first distribute funds, to the extent practicable, in accordance with the designations made by motor vehicle registrants under section 321.34, subsection 25, paragraph “e”. Remaining funds shall be distributed as the commission deems appropriate.
   2.  For purposes of this section, “eligible recipient” means any entity approved by the commission for receipt of volunteer Iowa license fee funds including a mentoring program certified by the commission, a volunteer center recognized by the commission, a national service program, or any other program supported by the commission.
    Sec. 2.  Section 321.34, Code 2009, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  25.  Volunteer Iowa plates.  
   a.  Upon payment of the initial set-up costs for establishing the volunteer Iowa plate, the department, in consultation with the Iowa commission on volunteer service, shall design a special volunteer Iowa plate displaying the address of the volunteer Iowa internet site and a message encouraging volunteerism.
   b.  Upon application and payment of the proper fees, the director may issue volunteer Iowa plates to the owner of a vehicle referred to in subsection 12.
   c.  The special fee for letter-number designated volunteer Iowa plates is forty dollars. The fee for personalized volunteer Iowa plates is twenty-five dollars, which shall be paid in addition to the special volunteer Iowa fee of forty dollars.
   d.  Upon receipt of the special registration plates, the applicant shall surrender the current registration plates to the county treasurer. The county treasurer shall validate the special registration plates in the same manner as regular registration plates are validated under this section. The annual special volunteer Iowa fee for letter-number designated plates is thirty dollars, which shall be paid in addition to the regular annual registration fee. The annual special fee for personalized volunteer Iowa plates is five dollars, which shall be paid in addition to the annual special volunteer Iowa fee and the regular annual registration fee.
   e.  An applicant for issuance of special volunteer Iowa plates may designate one eligible recipient, from a list approved by the Iowa commission on volunteer service, to which half of the applicant’s special volunteer Iowa plate fees shall be allocated as provided in section 15H.7. Each time a person applies for validation of special volunteer Iowa plates, the person may designate one eligible recipient, from the list approved by the Iowa commission on volunteer service, to which half of the applicant’s special volunteer Iowa renewal fees shall be allocated as provided in section 15H.7. The department shall forward the applicant’s designation to the Iowa commission on volunteer service.
   f.  The fees collected by the director under this subsection shall be paid monthly to the treasurer of state and deposited in the road use tax fund. The treasurer of state shall transfer monthly from the statutory allocations fund created under section 321.145, subsection 2, the amount of the special fees collected in the previous month for the volunteer Iowa plates as follows:
   (1)  To the Iowa volunteer generation fund, an amount equal to twenty dollars for each volunteer Iowa plate issued under paragraph “c” and an amount equal to fifteen dollars from each special volunteer Iowa renewal fee under paragraph “d”.
   (2)  To the volunteer Iowa license fee fund created under section 15H.7, an amount equal to twenty dollars for each volunteer Iowa plate issued under paragraph “c” and an amount equal to fifteen dollars from each special volunteer Iowa renewal fee under paragraph “d”.
    Sec. 3.  Section 321.145, subsection 2, paragraph b, subparagraph (3), Code Supplement 2009, is amended to read as follows:
   (3)  The amounts required to be transferred pursuant to section 321.34 from revenues available under this subsection shall be transferred and credited as provided in section 321.34, subsections 7, 10, 10A, 11, 11A, 11B, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 20A, 20B, 21, 22, 23, and 24, and 25 for the various purposes specified in those subsections.
EXPLANATION
   This bill provides for the issuance of a special motor vehicle registration plate to support volunteer recruitment efforts and volunteer programs.
   The bill creates a volunteer Iowa license fee fund under the control of the Iowa commission on volunteer service. The fund is the depository of certain revenues from volunteer Iowa registration plates credited to the fund and appropriated to the commission under the bill. The commission is responsible for distributing moneys in the fund first to eligible recipients designated by motor vehicle registrants and then to other eligible recipients. Eligible recipients include mentoring programs certified by the commission, volunteer centers recognized by the commission, national service programs, and other programs supported by the commission.
   Once the department of transportation receives payment for initial start-up costs, the department is required to design a special “volunteer Iowa” special plate, in consultation with the Iowa commission on volunteer service. The plate’s design will feature the address of the volunteer Iowa internet site and a message encouraging volunteerism. The department’s usual requirement for beginning production of a new special plate design is 500 prepaid applications for the plate.
   The initial fee for issuance of volunteer Iowa plates is $40. An applicant for personalized volunteer Iowa plates must pay the $25 personalized plate fee in addition to the $40 volunteer Iowa fee. The renewal fee for volunteer Iowa plates is $30 in addition to the annual vehicle registration fee. For renewal of personalized volunteer Iowa plates, an additional $5 personalized plate renewal fee applies in addition to the $30 volunteer Iowa fee and the annual registration fee. All registration fees are deposited in the road use tax fund.
   The bill directs that an amount equal to $20 from each special volunteer Iowa plate fee and $15 from each renewal fee be transferred each month from the statutory allocations fund to the Iowa volunteer generation fund, and the remaining $20 from each special plate fee and $15 from each renewal fee be transferred from the statutory allocations fund to the volunteer Iowa license fee fund.
   At the time of application for volunteer Iowa plates, and each year when the plates are renewed, a registrant may designate a volunteer program selected from a list of eligible recipients approved by the Iowa commission on volunteer service. The designated program will receive an amount equal to half of the special volunteer Iowa plate fees paid by the registrant at that time of issuance or renewal. The payment will be made from the volunteer Iowa license fee fund at the direction of the commission on volunteer service.