HF 2374 (LSB 6161YH (2) 91)

HOUSE FILE 2374

BY  RINKER

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to Iowa’s delta waterfowl special registration plates, providing fees, and making appropriations.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 321.34, Code 2026, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  11E.  Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates.
   a.  Upon application and payment of the proper fees, the director may issue Iowa’s delta waterfowl 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.
   b.  Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates shall be designed by the department in cooperation with the Iowa chapters of the delta waterfowl organization.
   c.  The special Iowa’s delta waterfowl fee for letter-number designated Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates is twenty-five dollars. An applicant may obtain personalized Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates upon payment of the fee for personalized plates as provided in subsection 5, which is in addition to the special Iowa’s delta waterfowl fee.
   d.  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, to the general fund of the state the amount of the special fees collected in the previous month for Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates. Such moneys are appropriated to the department of natural resources to distribute in the form of grants to support delta waterfowl habitat conservation and hunting in Iowa. In the awarding of grants, the department of natural resources shall give first consideration to any state chapter of a nonprofit organization supporting delta waterfowl habitat conservation and improvement, and efforts to increase the number of hunters in this state, and similar nonprofit organizations. Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys appropriated under this subsection shall not revert.
   e.  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 Iowa’s delta waterfowl fee for letter-number designated plates is ten dollars which shall be paid in addition to the regular annual registration fee. The annual fee for personalized Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates is ten dollars which shall be paid in addition to the annual special Iowa’s delta waterfowl fee and the regular annual registration fee. The annual special Iowa’s delta waterfowl fee shall be credited as provided under paragraph “d”.
   f.  The department shall not condition the issuance of Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates on the receipt of any number of orders for Iowa’s delta waterfowl plates.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill authorizes the department of transportation (DOT) to design and issue Iowa’s delta waterfowl (IDW) special registration plates. The design must be in cooperation with the Iowa chapters of the delta waterfowl organization. Delta waterfowl is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of delta waterfowl and the preservation of delta waterfowl hunters’ hunting heritage.
   The bill provides that the special IDW fee for letter-number designated IDW plates is $25. An applicant may obtain personalized IDW plates by paying an additional $25 fee for personalized registration plates as provided in Code section 321.34(5), which is in addition to the special IDW fee. The annual special IDW fee for letter-number designated plates is $10, which is in addition to the regular annual registration fee. Similarly, the annual fee for personalized IDW plates is $10, which is in addition to both the annual special IDW fee and the regular annual registration fee.
   The fees collected by the DOT must be paid monthly to the treasurer of state and deposited in the road use tax fund. The treasurer of state must transfer monthly from the statutory allocations fund to the general fund of the state an amount equal to the special fees collected in the previous month for the IDW plates. Such moneys are appropriated to the department of natural resources (DNR) to distribute in the form of grants to support delta waterfowl habitat conservation and hunting in Iowa. In awarding the grants, DNR must give first consideration to any state chapter of a nonprofit organization supporting delta waterfowl habitat conservation and improvement, and efforts to increase the number of hunters in Iowa, and similar nonprofit organizations.
   The bill prohibits the DOT from conditioning the issuance of IDW plates on the receipt of any number of orders for IDW plates.
   Under current law, nonprofit organizations are authorized to apply to the DOT for approval to issue a decal of the organization’s own design to be displayed on special registration plates with space reserved for an organizational decal. The nonprofit organization may charge a fee and retain any payment received for the organizational decal. Code section 321.34(13) sets forth the application process and certain limitations for nonprofit organizations and decal designs. Additionally, the DOT currently offers special ducks unlimited plates, upon application and payment of the required fees.