Reference is to the bill as introduced.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by adding the following appropriately numbered SECTION:
/ SECTION __. Section 56-3-2320(A) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(A) Upon
application being made and the required fee being paid to the
Department of Motor Vehicles, the department may issue dealer
license plates to a licensed motor vehicle dealer. The license
plates, notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter to the
contrary, may be used exclusively on motor vehicles owned by,
assigned, or loaned for test driving purposes to the dealer when
operated on the highways of this State by the dealer, its
corporate officers, its employees, or a prospective purchaser of
the motor vehicle. The use by a prospective purchaser is
limited to seven days, and the dealer shall provide the
prospective purchaser with a dated demonstration certificate.
The certificate must be approved by the department. Dealer
plates must not be used to operate wreckers or service vehicles
in use by the dealer nor to operate vehicles owned by the dealer
that are leased or rented by the public. No dealer plates may
be issued by the department unless the dealer furnishes proof in
a form acceptable to the department that he has a retail
business license as required by Chapter 36
of, Title 12 and has made at least
twenty sales of motor vehicles in the twelve months preceding
his application for a dealer plate. The sales requirement may
be waived by the department if the dealer has been licensed for
less than one year. For purposes of this section, the transfer
of ownership of a motor vehicle between the same individual or
corporation more than one time is considered as only one sale.
Multiple transfer of motor vehicles between licensed dealers for
the purpose of meeting eligibility requirements for motor
vehicle dealer plates is prohibited.
A dealer may be issued two plates for the
first twenty vehicles sold during the preceding year and one
additional plate for each fifteen vehicles sold beyond the
initial twenty during the preceding year. For good cause shown,
the department in its discretion may issue extra plates. If the
dealer has been licensed less than one year, the department
shall issue a number of license plates based on an estimated
number of sales for the coming year. The department may
increase or decrease the number of plates issued based on actual
sales made.
The cost of each dealer plate issued is
twenty dollars.
Upon application to the department, a
public or private school, college, or university, the United
Service Organization South Carolina, the American Red Cross,
or an economic development entity created or sanctioned by the
county where the entity is located, may be issued a license
plate to be used on vehicles loaned or rented to the school,
college, university, the United Service Organization South
Carolina, the American Red Cross, or economic development
entity by a licensed motor vehicle dealer. The plate must be a
personalized plate designed by the department. The cost of each
plate issued is two hundred dollars, of which one hundred sixty
dollars must be remitted by the department to the county in
which the school, college, university, chapter of the United
Service Organization South Carolina, chapter of the American Red
Cross, or economic development entity is located. Each
plate is valid for two years, and there is no limit on the
number of plates which may be issued, except in the case of an
economic development entity where only one plate per entity is
allowed.
A dealer license plate is allowed on a
motor vehicle which the dealer lends to a public or private
school for use in a driver education program. A plate used for
this purpose may be obtained without fee and without regard to
the limit on plates issued pursuant to this section. When the
motor vehicle is no longer used for driver education, the dealer
shall surrender the plate to the department.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this
section, a dealer exclusively selling heavy duty trucks at
retail is eligible to obtain license plates for exclusive use on
the heavy duty trucks regardless of the number of trucks sold by
him during the preceding required number of months. These
license plates for trucks must be noted with a distinct and
separate identification and used only on heavy duty trucks. For
purposes of this section, heavy duty trucks include trucks
having a gross vehicle weight of sixteen thousand pounds or
greater." /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.