S 1088 General Bill, By Drummond
 A BILL TO AMEND CHAPTER 3, TITLE 56, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976,
 RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND LICENSING BY ADDING ARTICLE 96 SO
 AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE ISSUANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCES LAW ENFORCEMENT FUND
 SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES.

   03/05/02  Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-4
   03/05/02  Senate Referred to Committee on Transportation SJ-4

TO AMEND CHAPTER 3, TITLE 56, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND LICENSING BY ADDING ARTICLE 96 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE ISSUANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCES LAW ENFORCEMENT FUND SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Chapter 3, title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Article 96

Section 56-3-9550. (A) The department may issue 'Natural Resources Law Enforcement Fund' special motor vehicle license plates to owners of private passenger-carrying motor vehicles or light pickups having an empty weight of seven thousand pounds or less and a gross weight of nine thousand pounds or less registered in their names which may have imprinted on the plate an emblem, a seal, or other symbol of the Department of Natural Resources. The Department of Natural Resources shall submit to the Department of Public Safety for its approval the emblem, seal, or other symbol it desires to be used for this special license plate. The Department of Natural Resources may request a change in the emblem, seal, or other symbol not more than once every five years. The special license plate must be issued or revalidated for a biennial period which expires twenty-four months from the month it is issued. The fee for this special license plate is the regular motor vehicle registration fee contained in Article 5, Chapter 3 of this title and a special motor vehicle license fee of one hundred dollars.

(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, from the fees collected pursuant to this section, the Comptroller General shall place sufficient funds into a special restricted account to be used by the Department of Public Safety to defray the expenses of the Motor Vehicle Division in producing and administering the special license plates. The remaining funds collected from the special motor vehicle license fee must be distributed to the Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division

(C) Before the department produces and distributes a plate authorized under this section, it must receive:

(1) four hundred or more prepaid applications for the special license plate or a deposit of four thousand dollars from the individual or organization seeking issuance of the license plate. If a deposit of four thousand dollars is made by an individual or organization pursuant to this section, the department must refund the four thousand dollars once an equivalent amount of license plate fees is collected for that organization's license plate. If the equivalent amount is not collected within four years of the first issuance of the license plate, then the department must retain the deposit; and

(2) a plan to market the sale of the special license plate that must be approved by the department.

(D) If the department receives less than three hundred biennial applications and renewals for a particular special license plate authorized under this section, it shall not produce additional special license plates in that series. The department shall continue to issue special license plates of that series until the existing inventory is exhausted."

SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.