HF 2142 (LSB 5770YH (3) 90)

HOUSE FILE 2142

BY  BODEN

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to personalized fire fighter and emergency medical services special registration plates, and providing fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 321.34, subsection 10, paragraphs a, b, and d, Code 2024, are amended to read as follows:
   a.  An owner referred to in subsection 12 who Upon application and payment of the proper fees, the director may issue fire fighter plates to the owner of a motor vehicle subject to registration under section 321.109, subsection 1, autocycle, motor truck, motor home, multipurpose vehicle, motorcycle, trailer, or travel trailer if the owner is a current or retired member of a paid or volunteer fire department may, upon written application to the department, order. The special registration plates, designed by the department in cooperation with representatives designated by the Iowa fire fighters’ associations, which signify that the applicant is a current or retired member of a paid or volunteer fire department.
   b.  The application shall be approved by the department in consultation with representatives designated by the Iowa fire fighters’ associations, and the special registration plates shall be issued to the applicant in exchange for the registration plates previously issued to the person. An applicant who is the owner of a business-trade truck or special truck shall not be issued special fire fighter registration plates for more than one vehicle. The fee for the special plates is twenty-five dollars which shall be paid in addition to the regular annual registration fee.  An applicant may obtain personalized fire fighter plates upon payment of the additional fee for personalized plates as provided in subsection 5 in addition to the special fire fighter fee and the regular registration fee. Personalized plates authorized by this subsection shall be limited to no more than five initials, letters, or combinations of numerals and letters. The department shall validate the special plates in the same manner as regular registration plates are validated under this section at the regular annual registration fee.
   d.  For purposes of this subsection, a person is considered to be retired if the person is recognized by the chief of the fire department where the individual served, and on record, as officially retired from the fire department. Special fire fighter registration plates with a fire fighter emblem shall be surrendered, as provided in subsection 12, in exchange for regular registration plates upon termination of the motor vehicle owner’s membership in the paid or volunteer fire department, unless the person is a retired member in good standing.
    Sec. 2.  Section 321.34, subsection 10A, Code 2024, is amended to read as follows:
   10A.  Emergency medical services plates.
   a.  The owner of a motor vehicle referred to in subsection 12 who is a current member of a paid or volunteer emergency medical services agency may, upon written application to the department, order special registration plates with an emergency medical services distinguishing processed emblem, designed by the department in cooperation with representatives designated by the Iowa emergency medical services association, which plates signify emblem signifies that the applicant is a current member of a paid or volunteer emergency medical services agency. The application shall be approved by the department, in consultation with representatives designated by the Iowa emergency medical services association, and the special registration plates shall be issued to the applicant in exchange for the registration plates previously issued to the person. The fee for the special plates is twenty-five dollars which is in addition to the regular annual registration fee. The department shall validate the special plates in the same manner as regular registration plates are validated under this section at the regular annual registration fee.
   b.  The special plate fees collected by the director under this subsection subsection 12, paragraph “a”, from the annual validation of letter-number designated emergency medical services plates, and subsection 12, paragraph “c”, from the issuance and annual validation of personalized emergency medical services plates 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, to the emergency medical services fund created in section 135.25 the amount of the special fees collected in the previous month for issuance of emergency medical services plates.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   Under current law, an owner of a motor vehicle who is a current or retired member of a paid or volunteer fire department may order fire fighter special registration plates signifying the owner is an active or retired fire fighter. The plates are designed by the department of transportation (DOT) in cooperation with representatives designated by the Iowa fire fighters’ associations. The design is such that the plates do not match the color and design of regular registration plates (alternate design plates), as authorized by Code section 321.166 (vehicle plate specifications).
   Likewise, under current law, an owner of a motor vehicle who is a current member of a paid or volunteer emergency medical services (EMS) agency may order special registration plates, designed by the DOT in cooperation with representatives designated by the Iowa EMS association, signifying that the person is a current member of a paid or volunteer EMS agency. The design is such that the plates match the color and design of regular registration plates but contain a distinguishing processed emblem (emblem plates).
   This bill authorizes the DOT to issue personalized fire fighter and EMS registration plates, in accordance with Code sections 321.34(5) and 321.34(12), as applicable. The fee for personalized plates is $25, which is in addition to all other registration fees. The annual fee for personalized plates is $5, and is also in addition to all other fees. Due to the plates’ respective designs, the bill limits the number of characters on a personalized fire fighter or EMS plate to five numerals and letters.
   The bill makes further changes to align the plate provisions with the respective language used for other, similar plates (alternate design plate language for fire fighter plates, and emblem plate language for EMS plates). For purposes of emblem plates, Code section 321.34(12) contains provisions relating to the default $25 fee, personalized emblem plates, and the exchange or surrender of such plates. Therefore, the EMS plate provision is updated to include relevant references and exclude duplicative provisions.