2006 Code of Virginia § 46.2-725 - Special license plates, generally

46.2-725. Special license plates, generally.

A. No series of special license plates shall be created or issued by theCommissioner or the Department except as authorized in this article. Nospecial license plates in any series not provided for in this article and noregistration decal for any such license plate shall be issued, reissued, orrenewed on or after July 1, 1995. However, subject to the limitationscontained in subdivisions 1 and 2 of subsection B of this section, theCommissioner may issue, when feasible, special license plates that arecombinations of no more than two series of special license plates authorizedin this article and currently issued by the Department; in addition to thestate registration fee, the fee for any such combination shall be equal tothe sum of the fees for the two series plus the fee for reserved numbers andletters, if applicable. The provisions of subdivisions 1 and 2 of subsectionB of this section shall not apply to special license plates that arecombinations of two series of special license plates authorized in thisarticle and currently issued by the Department if one of the two combineddesigns, when feasible, incorporates or includes the international symbol ofaccess.

B. Except as otherwise provided in this article:

1. No special license plates shall be considered for authorization by theGeneral Assembly unless and until the individual, group, entity,organization, or other entity seeking the authorization of such speciallicense plates shall have demonstrated to the satisfaction of the GeneralAssembly that they meet the issuance requirements set forth in thissubdivision. For the purposes of this article, each prepaid application shallbe on a form prescribed by the Department and, excluding the vehicleregistration fee, shall include the proposed or authorized fee for theissuance of the proposed or authorized special license plates and, ifapplicable, the annual fee for reserved numbers or letters prescribed under 46.2-726. Once authorized by the General Assembly, no license plates providedfor in this article shall be developed and issued by the Department until theCommissioner receives at least 350 prepaid applications therefor within 30days of the effective date of the authorization associated with theapplications. If the end of the 30-day period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, orholiday, the 30-day period shall end on the following business day.

2. No additional license plates shall be issued or reissued in any seriesthat, after five or more years of issuance, has fewer than 200 active sets ofplates. No such license plates shall be issued or reissued unlessreauthorized by the General Assembly. Such reauthorized license plates shallremain subject to the provisions of this article.

3. The annual fee for the issuance of any license plates issued pursuant tothis article shall be $10 plus the prescribed fee for state license plates.Applications for all special license plates issued pursuant to this articleshall be on forms prescribed by the Commissioner. All special license platesissued pursuant to this article shall be of designs prescribed by theCommissioner and shall bear unique letters and numerals, clearlydistinguishable from any other license plate designs, and be readilyidentifiable by law-enforcement personnel.

No other state license plates shall be required on any vehicles bearingspecial license plates issued under the provisions of this article.

All fees collected by the Department under this article shall be paid by theCommissioner into the state treasury and shall be set aside as a special fundto be used to meet the expenses of the Department.

C. The provisions of this article relating to registration fees shall applyonly to those vehicles registered as passenger cars, motor homes, and pick-upor panel trucks, as defined in 46.2-100. All other vehicle types registeredwith special license plates shall be subject to the appropriate speciallicense plate fees, registration fees and other fees prescribed by law forsuch vehicle types.

D. For special license plates that generate revenues that are shared withentities other than the Department, hereinafter referred to as "revenuesharing special license plates," the General Assembly shall review allproposed revenue sharing special license plate authorizations to determinewhether the revenues are to be shared with entities or organizations that (i)provide to the Commonwealth or its citizens a broad public service that is tobe funded, in whole or in part, by the proposed revenue sharing speciallicense plate authorization and (ii) are at least one of the following:

1. A nonprofit corporation as defined in 501 (c) (3) of the United StatesInternal Revenue Code;

2. An agency, board, commission, or other entity established or operated bythe Commonwealth;

3. A political subdivision of the Commonwealth; or

4. An institution of higher education whose main campus is located inVirginia.

No revenue sharing special license plate authorization shall be approved if,as determined by the General Assembly, it does not meet the criteria setforth in this subsection.

(1989, c. 727; 1995, c. 747; 1996, cc. 922, 1026; 1997, cc. 774, 816; 2003,c. 923; 2004, c. 747; 2005, c. 294; 2006, c. 550.)