1-1     By:  Hawley (Senate Sponsor - Lindsay)                H.B. No. 2681

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 8, 1997;

 1-3     May 9, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on Finance;

 1-4     May 18, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 13,

 1-5     Nays 0; May 18, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the issuance of specially designed Texas license plates

 1-9     for Keep Texas Beautiful.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Subchapter F, Chapter 502, Transportation Code,

1-12     is amended by adding Section 502.2731 to read as follows:

1-13           Sec. 502.2731.  KEEP TEXAS BEAUTIFUL LICENSE

1-14     PLATES.  (a)  The department shall issue specially designed license

1-15     plates for passenger cars and light commercial motor vehicles

1-16     having a manufacturer's rated carrying capacity of one ton or less

1-17     that include the words "Keep Texas Beautiful" and are of a color,

1-18     quality, and design approved by Keep Texas Beautiful, Inc.

1-19           (b)  The department shall issue license plates under this

1-20     section to a person who:

1-21                 (1)  applies to the county assessor-collector of the

1-22     county in which the person resides on a form provided by the

1-23     department; and

1-24                 (2)  pays an annual fee of $50, in addition to the fee

1-25     prescribed by Section 502.161 or 502.162 and, if personalized

1-26     prestige license plates are issued, in addition to the fee

1-27     prescribed by Section 502.251.

1-28           (c)  There is created in the general revenue fund a special

1-29     nonlapsing fund to be known as the Keep Texas Beautiful trust fund.

1-30     Money deposited in the fund shall be dedicated to the purposes set

1-31     forth in Subsection (h).  Money in the fund shall be held in

1-32     interest-bearing accounts in public depositories authorized by law

1-33     and may be invested and reinvested in such securities as are

1-34     approved by the state.  Interest earned and other money from

1-35     appropriated state funds and any other source deposited into the

1-36     Keep Texas Beautiful trust fund becomes a part of the fund and

1-37     available for use as prescribed for the fund.

1-38           (d)  The department shall deposit $45 of each fee collected

1-39     under this section in the state treasury to the credit of the Keep

1-40     Texas Beautiful trust fund.

1-41           (e)  The department shall deposit the remainder of each fee

1-42     collected under this section after deposit as provided by

1-43     Subsection (d) in the state treasury to the credit of the state

1-44     highway fund to be used only to defray the cost of administering

1-45     this section.

1-46           (f)  If license plates issued under this section are lost,

1-47     stolen, or mutilated, the owner of the vehicle for which the

1-48     license plates were issued may obtain replacement license plates

1-49     from the department by paying a replacement fee of $5.  If the

1-50     owner of a vehicle for which license plates were issued under this

1-51     section disposes of the vehicle during a registration year, the

1-52     person shall return the special license plates to the department.

1-53           (g)  There is no limit to the number of passenger cars and

1-54     light commercial motor vehicles for which the person may apply for

1-55     the issuance of license plates under this section.

1-56           (h)  Money deposited in the Keep Texas Beautiful trust fund

1-57     shall be allocated in its entirety to Keep Texas Beautiful, Inc.

1-58     The money in the Keep Texas Beautiful trust fund shall be

1-59     transferred from the Keep Texas Beautiful trust fund to Keep Texas

1-60     Beautiful, Inc. not more than one time per calendar year as

1-61     determined by the department.

1-62           SECTION 2.  Section 502.252, Transportation Code, is amended

1-63     to read as follows:

1-64           Sec. 502.252.  Certain Specialized Plates Available

 2-1     Personalized.  A person applying for license plates under Section

 2-2     502.258, 502.259, 502.260, 502.261, 502.262, 502.263, 502.264,

 2-3     502.265, 502.269, 502.270, 502.271, 502.272, 502.273, 502.2731, or

 2-4     502.274 may:

 2-5                 (1)  have a license plate number assigned by the

 2-6     department; or

 2-7                 (2)  apply for personalized prestige license plates

 2-8     under Section 502.251.

 2-9           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-10     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-11     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-12     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-13     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

2-14     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

2-15     passage, and it is so enacted.

2-16                                  * * * * *