BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1908|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
CONSENT
Bill No: AB 1908
Author: Cook (R) and Carter (D)
Amended: 3/11/10 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE : 4-0, 6/22/10
AYES: Denham, Correa, Negrete McLeod, Cedillo
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wyland, Vacancy, Vacancy
SENATE TRANS. & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 8-0, 6/29/10
AYES: Lowenthal, Huff, DeSaulnier, Harman, Kehoe, Pavley,
Simitian, Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ashburn
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 5/13/10 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Vehicles: specialized license plates:
Veterans organization
SOURCE : California Association of County Veterans
Service Officers
DIGEST : This bill allows the Department of Veterans
Affairs to redesign the veterans organizations license
plates.
ANALYSIS : Existing law requires that in order to
register a vehicle in California, the registered owner pay
CONTINUED
AB 1908
Page
2
a registration fee of $34, a $22 surcharge for additional
personnel for the California Highway Patrol (CHP), various
locally-imposed fees, and a vehicle license fee (VLF) equal
to 1.15 percent of a vehicle's value based on purchase
price depreciated according to a statutory schedule.
In addition, any registered owner of a vehicle may apply to
the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for veterans'
organization license plates for his or her vehicle.
Veterans plates bear a distinctive design that includes the
word "veteran" along the bottom of the plate and includes a
decal on the left side of the plate for one of over 100
sponsoring veterans' organizations, such as the American
Legion, 101st Airborne Division, or the National Guard. In
addition to the above fees, for veterans plates a vehicle
owner must pay:
1. $30 for the initial issuance of the plates and decals.
2. $30 annually for each renewal that includes continued
display of the plates and decals.
3. $35 to replace the plates if they become damaged.
4. $10 to replace the decals if they become damaged.
5. $40 to personalize the plates.
Revenues derived from these fees go, after paying DMV's
costs associated with veterans plates, to county veterans
service offices, except for revenues from the $10-fee for
replacement decals, which is divided between county veteran
service officers and the California Environmental License
Plate Fund (ELP Fund). The ELP Fund is used to support
various state environmental programs and agencies.
This bill:
1. Permits the Department of Veterans Affairs to modify the
distinctive designs of veterans plates and the
associated decals but prohibits DMV from issuing the new
plates or decals until it has issued all existing
inventories of plates and decals.
AB 1908
Page
3
2. Requires DMV, by July 1, 2011, to provide a link on its
website through which vehicle owners can order veterans
plates.
3. Redirects from the ELP Fund to county veterans service
officers the half of revenues from the $10-charge to
replace a damaged veterans' organization decal.
Comments
The author's office introduced this bill to increase
revenues derived from veterans' organizations license
plates and to increase funds available for county veteran
service officers. According to the author's office, this
bill will help the California Department of Veterans
Affairs and others to better market veterans' organization
license plates, because modifying the plate and decal
designs will make the plate more appealing. In addition,
having DMV make the plate available for on-line ordering
will stimulate sales.
The resulting revenue increase would enable county veteran
services officers to expand their operations of providing
veterans and their families free claims assistance and
referral to local, state, and federal programs. The
author's office also indicates that elimination of the
50-50 split of fee proceeds from replacement decals
recognizes the fact that the veterans license plate is
intended to benefit veterans programs, rather than
environmental programs.
Initially authorized in 1991, the ELP Fund provides funding
that is used to support a variety of state activities that
have some environmental connection. Examples of the
entities that receive this funding include the Resources
Secretary, Department of Forestry, Department of Fish and
Game, Wildlife Conservation Board, Department of Parks and
Recreation, and various conservancies.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/2/10)
AB 1908
Page
4
California Association of County Veterans Services Officers
(source)
AMVETS, Department of California
American Legion, Department of California
California Mental Health Directors Association
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Vietnam Veterans of America, California Council
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block,
Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Charles
Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De
La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer,
Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines,
Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey,
Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma,
Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas,
Saldana, Silva, Smyth, Solorio, Audra Strickland,
Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines,
Yamada, John A. Perez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Caballero, Norby, Skinner, Vacancy
TSM:do 8/3/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****