An Act To Change the Threshold for Creating a Specialty License Plate from 2,000 Prepaid Orders to 1,000 Prepaid Orders and To Extend by One Year the Time Allowed for Gathering Signatures
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1124
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: POULIOT
Amends: 29-A MRSA §456-E, 29-A MRSA §456-G, 29-A MRSA §456-H, 29-A MRSA §468, 29-A MRSA §515-B, 29-A MRSA §523

Legislative Document
No. 1124
S.P. 387
In Senate, March 22, 2021
An Act To Change the Threshold for Creating a Specialty License 
Plate from 2,000 Prepaid Orders to 1,000 Prepaid Orders and To 
Extend by One Year the Time Allowed for Gathering Signatures
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on March 18, 2021.  Referred to the Committee on 
Transportation pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator POULIOT of Kennebec.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  29-A MRSA §456-E, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 547, §2, is amended 
to read:
5.  Payment for costs associated with the production and issuance of the first 2,000 
plates.  The sponsor of the breast cancer support services special registration plates shall 
provide $40,000 to the Secretary of State for costs associated with the production and 
issuance of plates. The Secretary of State shall deposit these funds in the Specialty License 
Plate Fund, established under section 469. In accordance with section 468, subsection 3‑A, 
the Secretary of State shall provide 2,000 credit receipts to the sponsor to provide to each 
supporter that contributed $20. A credit receipt may be used only to obtain one set of breast 
cancer support services special registration plates.
Sec. 2.  29-A MRSA §456-G, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 73, §1, is amended 
to read:
5.  Payment for costs associated with the production and issuance of the first 2,000 
plates.  The sponsor of the Support Animal Welfare special registration plates shall provide 
$50,000 to the Secretary of State for costs associated with the production and issuance of 
plates.  The Secretary of State shall deposit these funds in the Specialty License Plate Fund 
established under section 469.  In accordance with section 468, subsection 3‑A, the 
Secretary of State shall provide 2,000 credit receipts to the sponsor to provide to each 
supporter who contributed $25.  A credit receipt may be used only to obtain one set of 
Support Animal Welfare special registration plates.
Sec. 3.  29-A MRSA §456-H, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 400, §1, is 
amended to read:
5.  Payment for costs associated with the production and issuance of the first 2,000 
plates.  The sponsor of The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital special registration plates 
shall provide $50,000 to the Secretary of State for costs associated with the production and 
issuance of The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital registration plates.  The Secretary of 
State shall deposit these funds in the Specialty License Plate Fund established under section 
469.  In accordance with section 468, subsection 3‑A, the Secretary of State shall provide 
2,000 credit receipts to the sponsor to provide to each supporter who contributed $25.  A 
credit receipt may be used only to obtain one set of special registration plates.
Sec. 4.  29-A MRSA §468, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2007, c. 383, §5, is further 
amended to read:
2.  Names, signatures and payment.  The Secretary of State may not manufacture an 
authorized specialty license plate unless the sponsor:
A.  Provides to the Secretary of State a list with 2,000 at least 1,000 names, dated 
signatures and current plate numbers of supporters who have signed a statement 
declaring they intend to purchase and display the specialty license plate; and
B.  Collects from each supporter who signs the statement an amount of $25 for each 
set of plates and provides to the Secretary of State the sum of these contributions in the 
amount of $50,000, which is nonrefundable.  If the sum of these contributions is less 
than $50,000, the sponsor shall provide to the Secretary of State the difference between 
the amount collected and $50,000, which is nonrefundable.
The Secretary of State shall deposit the $50,000 provided under paragraph B in the 
Specialty License Plate Fund established under section 469.
Sec. 5.  29-A MRSA §468, sub-§3-A, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 383, §5, is 
amended to read:
3-A.  Credit receipts.  The Secretary of State shall provide 2,000 credit receipts to the 
sponsor to provide to each supporter that contributed $25.  The credit receipt may be used 
only to obtain one set of specialty license plates.
Sec. 6.  29-A MRSA §468, sub-§7, as amended by PL 2007, c. 383, §5, is further 
amended to read:
7.  Deadline for Secretary of State approval.  The sponsor must submit to the 
Secretary of State the names, signatures, payment and proposed design for the specialty 
license plate by September 1st.  The signatures must have been collected within 2 3 years 
of submission to the Secretary of State.  If the design is approved pursuant to subsection 5, 
the Secretary of State shall submit proposed legislation seeking authorization of the 
specialty license plate to the following regular session of the Legislature.
Sec. 7.  29-A MRSA §515-B, first ¶, as amended by PL 2003, c. 67, §1, is further 
amended to read:
The Secretary of State, on application and upon evidence of payment of the excise tax 
required by Title 36, section 1482, shall issue a registration certificate and a Purple Heart 
motorcycle registration plate, to be used in lieu of a regular registration plate, to a person 
who is a Purple Heart medal recipient.  Notwithstanding section 468, the Secretary of State 
may issue fewer than 2,000 1,000 of the plates authorized by this section, and this plate 
does not require a sponsor.
Sec. 8.  29-A MRSA §523, sub-§2-A, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 734, §2, is 
amended by amending the first blocked paragraph to read:
Notwithstanding section 468, the Secretary of State may issue fewer than 2,000 1,000 of 
the plates authorized by this subsection, and this plate does not require a sponsor.  These 
special designating plates must bear the word "Veteran."
Sec. 9.  Retroactivity. This Act applies retroactively to September 1, 2019.
SUMMARY
This bill makes changes to the law relating to specialty license plates.  The bill lowers 
the number of signatures a sponsor of a proposed specialty license plate is required to 
submit to the Secretary of State from 2,000 to 1,000.  The bill provides that, if the sum of 
contributions from supporters of a proposed specialty license plate is less than $50,000, the 
sponsor is required to provide the difference between the amount collected and $50,000 to 
the Secretary of State.  The bill also increases from 2 years to 3 years the amount of time 
allowed for a sponsor to collect signatures of supporters of a proposed specialty license 
plate before submission to the Secretary of State.  The bill also provides that these changes 
apply retroactively to September 1, 2019 so that the changes apply to sponsors currently in 
the 2-year window of meeting the specialty license plate requirements.