An Act To Establish a Special License Plate To Honor Maine Residents Serving Our Country
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 0964
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: PILON, DAMON, FISHER, HOGAN, MARLEY, MAZUREK, TARDY, THOMAS, DIAMOND
Amends: 5 MRSA §12004-I, 29-A MRSA §456-D

Legislative Document 
No. 964 
H.P.724 
House of Representatives, March 1,2007 
An Act To Establish a Special License Plate To Honor Maine 
Residents Serving Our Country 
(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative PILON of Saco. 
Cosponsored by Senator DAMON of Hancock and 
~~/J7.7IldC~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: FISHER of Brewer, HOGAN of Old Orchard Beach, MARLEY of Portland, 
MAZUREK of Rockland, TARDY of Newport, THOMAS of Ripley, Senators: DIAMOND of 
Cumberland, SA V AGE of Knox. 
Printed on recycled paper 
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Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, Maine residents serving in conflicts throughout the world need our 
support; and 
Whereas, the need to support our troops and assist their families is urgent and 
important; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within 
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §12004-I, sub-§84-A is enacted to read: 
84-A. 
Transportation: 
Motor Vehicles 
We Support Our 
Troops Advisory 
Board 
Not Authorized 
Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §456-D is enacted to read: 
§456-D. We Support Our Troops registration plates 
29-A MRSA 
§456-D 
Beginning November 1, 2007, the Secretary of State shall issue registration plates, 
referred to in this section as "We Support Our Troops plates," to support Maine troops 
and their families in accordance with this section and section 468 except that, for the 
purposes of this section, the requirement for. the list of 2,000 names of supporters as 
required by section 468, subsection 2 is waived. We Support Our Troops plates are not 
required for registration of a motor vehicle but are to allow citizens to participate In 
voluntarilv funding special programs to assist the Maine families of troops. 
1. We Support Our Troops plates. The Secretary of State, upon receiving an 
application and evidence of payment of the excise tax required by Title 36, section 1482" 
the registration fee required by section 501 and the administrative fee and contribution 
provided for in subsection 2, shall issue a registration certificate and a set of We Support 
Our Troopsmates to be us~d in lie!!.. of regular regj~tr~fum Iili!!~~Lh.ese plates musJ bear 
identification numl?er§ an.<iletters., 
2. 
Administrative fee and contribution to special programs. 
A person ma~ 
contribute funds to the Secretary of State for the .. Ql!IP.Qses of providing financial 
assistan~e to members of the Maine National Guard and their families or residents of the 
State who are members of the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States and 
their families for emergencies and other sp~cial needs by aQPlving for the We Suppon 
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Our Troops plates and submitting, in addition to the regular motor vehicle registration fee 
re[\!ir_~~ll_nder section 501, a sum of $20 cr.edite~d a~fQJ19-,:y~~ 
A. Ten dollars to the Secretary of State for use in accordance with subsection 5; and 
B. Ten dollars to the Specialty License Plate Fund established in section 469 for 
administrative and production costs. 
3. Renewal fee. In addition to the regular motor vehicle registration fee reguired 
under section 501, the annual renewal contribution for We Support Our Troops plates is 
$15, which must be deposited with the Treasurer of State and credited as follows: 
A. Ten dollars to the Secretary of State for use in accordance with subsection 5; and 
B. Five dollars to the Specialty License Plate Fund established in section 469 for 
administrative and production costs. 
4. Design. A sponsor must submit a design for the We Support Our Troops plates to 
the Secretary of State for approval or modification in accordance with section 468, 
subsection 5. The design must include the shape of the boundaries of the State of Maine, 
with an image of a curled ribbon superimposed over the shape of the State, with the 
words "We Support Our Troops" at the bottom of the plate. 
5. Administration of fees. The Secretary of State monthly shall deposit all funds 
collected under subsection 2, paragraph A and subsection 3, paragraph A in the Maine 
National Guard Foundation Fund Special Revenue Funds account in the Department of 
Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management and referred to in this subsection as "the 
fund." Revenue in the fund must be used to provide financial assistance to members of 
the Maine National Guard, residents of the State who are members of the Reserves of the 
Armed Forces of the United States and the families of those members of the Maine 
National Guard or Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States for emergencies 
and other special needs as determined by the We Support Our Troops Advisory Board 
established in Titl~~section 12004-1, subsection 84-A. 
6. 
We Support Our Troops Advisory Board. 
The We Support Our Troops 
Advisory Board-L...<r2_established by Title 5, section 12004-1, subsection 84-A, consists of9 
members., Memhership of the advisorv..board is as follows: 
A. 
Six members appointed by the Governor, in consultation with the Adjutant 
Geill'.r~L.9f the State oLMaine, as follows: 
Q1J'--\:YQJ~ITSOns,f~s:11@Rresenting the interests of the Maine National Guard; 
QLJwo persOUb each representing the interests of Maine residents in the 
Reseryes of the Armed Forces of the United States; and 
Q) Two--p-,=,[sons representing the interests of the public; 
3() 
rLJ)_!19_f!L~mQcr o[.tlle S(;na~ appointed by the President of the Senate; 
7LQne_member of the House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the 
tLouse; and 
D. The_~diutant General of the State of Maine. 
The board shall determine the use of the revenue in the Maine National Guard Foundation 
Fund Special Revenue Funds account in the Department of Defense, Veterans and 
Emergency Management. 
Revenue in the fund must be used 
to provide financial 
assistance in the form of loans or grants to members of the Maine National Guard, 
residents of the State who are members of the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the 
United States and the families of those members of the Maine National Guard or 
Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States for emergencies and other special 
needs. 
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The board shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over transportation matters by June 30th of each year. 
The report must 
provide a detailed account of funds for each fiscal year and include the number of loans 
and grants awarded, the names of those who received loans and grant money. a 
description of the process for awarding loans and grants and the total amount of loan and 
grant money awarded. 
IS 
Sec. 3. Protection of design of plates. The Secretary of State shall copyright the 
design of the registration plate established pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 
29-A, section 456-0 and make the design available for a fee to other states interested in 
establishing this specialty license plate. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited In the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
This bill authorizes the issuance of a special registration plate to raise funds for 
members of the Maine National Guard and their families and residents of the State who 
are members of the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States and their families. 
The bill establishes the We Support Our Troops Advisory Board and directs the board to 
determine the appropriate use of the revenue generated by the special registration plate 
and distribute the funds in the form of loans or grants to members of the Maine National 
Guard and their families and residents of the State who are members of the Reserves of 
the Armed Forces of the United States and their families. 
The bill also directs the Secretary of State to copyright the design of this plate and 
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offer the design to other states for a fee. 
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