By Hightower                                    H.B. No. 1683

      75R5776 JD-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the issuance of special license plates to county

 1-3     judges.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter F, Chapter 502, Transportation Code,

 1-6     is amended by adding Section 502.293 to read as follows:

 1-7           Sec. 502.293.  COUNTY JUDGES.  (a)  The department shall

 1-8     design and provide for the issuance of special license plates for

 1-9     passenger cars and light trucks that are owned by persons who are

1-10     county judges of this state.

1-11           (b)  License plates issued to county judges under this

1-12     section shall bear the words "County Judge."

1-13           (c)  The department shall issue license plates under this

1-14     section to a person who:

1-15                 (1)  applies to the county tax collector in the county

1-16     of the person's residence on a form prescribed by the department;

1-17                 (2)  pays the fee prescribed by Subsection (d); and

1-18                 (3)  submits with the application proof that the person

1-19     is a county judge of this state.

1-20           (d)  The fee for issuance of special license plates under

1-21     this section is $10.

1-22           (e)  Registration under this section is valid for one year

1-23     and expires in the same manner as do regular motor vehicle

1-24     registrations, except as provided by Subsection (f).

 2-1           (f)  Registration under this section expires when the owner

 2-2     of the vehicle for which the special plates were issued ceases to

 2-3     be a county judge. The judge shall return the special license

 2-4     plates to the department.

 2-5           (g)  If the owner of a vehicle for which plates are issued

 2-6     under this section disposes of the vehicle during a registration

 2-7     year, the person shall return the special plates to the department,

 2-8     and at that time may apply for issuance of those plates to another

 2-9     vehicle.

2-10           (h)  If license plates issued under this section are lost,

2-11     stolen, or mutilated, the owner of the vehicle for which the plates

2-12     were issued may obtain replacement plates from the department by

2-13     paying a replacement fee of $5.

2-14           (i)  In this section, "county judge" means the judge of the

2-15     county court established by Section 15, Article V, Texas

2-16     Constitution.

2-17           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-18           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-19     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-20     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-21     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-22     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.