BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 2001

By: King

Transportation

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The bill sponsor has informed the committee that, since 1949, Texas has issued specialty license plates for disabled veterans to recognize their service and provide certain benefits such as parking privileges, free or discounted toll road access, and registration fee exemptions. S.B. 2001 establishes a similar specialty license plate to honor and provide benefits for peace officers who were disabled in the line of duty.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 2001 amends the Transportation Code to provide for the issuance of disabled peace officer (DPO) license plates. The bill authorizes a person to register, for the person's own use, one vehicle without payment of any fee paid for or at the time of registration except the fee for the license plates if the following criteria are met:

· the person is a peace officer;

· the person is disabled as a result of an injury suffered during the course and scope of the person's employment as a peace officer; and

· the motor vehicle is owned by the person and has a gross vehicle weight of 18,000 pounds or less or is a motor home.

Registration of a vehicle with DPO license plates is valid for one year.

S.B. 2001 authorizes such a person who is eligible to receive license plates for persons with disabilities to elect to receive DPO license plates that include the symbol of access adopted by Rehabilitation International in 1969 at its Eleventh World Congress on Rehabilitation of the Disabled. The bill establishes that a reference in law to license plates issued in such a manner with the applicable symbol of access includes DPO license plates described by the bill's provisions that include that symbol.

S.B. 2001 requires the initial application for DPO license plates to be accompanied by the following:

· the written statement required by applicable state law certifying that the applicant has a mobility problem that substantially impairs the person's ability to ambulate;

· a written statement completed by the chief law enforcement officer of the law enforcement agency that employed the person, certifying that the person is disabled as a result of an injury suffered during the course and scope of the person's employment as a peace officer; and

· any other information required for an application under the bill's provisions.

The bill requires DPO license plates issued under the bill's provisions to include the following:

· the letters "DPO" on the plate if the plate is issued for a vehicle other than a motorcycle; and

· the words "Disabled Peace Officer" at the bottom of each license plate.

The bill sets the fee for the first set of license plates at $3 and establishes that there is no fee for each additional set of license plates. The bill authorizes a person who receives a DPO license plate under the bill's provisions that includes the applicable symbol to elect to receive a disabled parking placard.

S.B. 2001 authorizes a person entitled to DPO license plates under the bill's provisions to receive license plates issued under statutory provisions relating to vehicle registration under the same conditions for the issuance of license plates under the bill's provisions, other than the requirements for the plates to include "DPO" and "Disabled Peace Officer." The bill authorizes a license plate with the letters "DPO" to be personalized with up to four characters and authorizes a person entitled to receive DPO license plates under the bill's provisions to instead use, for a vehicle that meets the requirements of statutory provisions relating to specialty license plates for classic motor vehicles and travel trailers, custom vehicles, street rods, and certain exhibition vehicles, DPO license plates issued by the state that meet the following criteria:

· are embossed with an alphanumeric pattern;

· are of a plate design that was issued in the same year as the model year of the vehicle;

· are approved for use by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles; and

· include the symbol described by statutory provisions relating to license plates for persons with disabilities, if the person satisfies the requirements under the bill's provisions for the issuance of license plates that include the applicable symbol and elects to include the symbol on the plates.

S.B. 2001 does the following:

· requires a veteran discount program established by a toll project entity for electronic toll collection customers to include free or discounted use of an entity's toll project by an electronic toll collection customer whose account relates to a vehicle registered under the bill's provisions relating to DPO license plates;

· effective July 1, 2025, exempts from the application of the offense for falsification or forgery relating to vehicle registration the written statements that accompany an initial application for DPO license plates that includes the applicable symbol of access;

· authorizes a person with a permanent disability to receive two disabled parking placards if the person receives two sets of DPO license plates that include the applicable symbol of access;

· extends the parking privileges for veterans with disabilities and certain military award recipients to a vehicle displaying a DPO license plate that includes the applicable symbol of access; and

· establishes that parking spaces or areas designated by a political subdivision or private property owner for the exclusive use of vehicles transporting persons with disabilities may be used by vehicles displaying DPO license plates that include the applicable symbol of access.

S.B. 2001 expands the conduct that constitutes the offense of unauthorized use of parking designated for persons with disabilities to include standing a vehicle on which are displayed DPO license plates that include the applicable symbol of access in a parking space or area designated specifically for persons with disabilities by a political subdivision or a person who owns or controls private property used for parking as to which a political subdivision has provided for the application of under statutory provisions relating to the offense, and the standing of the vehicle in that parking space or area is not authorized by statutory provisions relating to parking privileges for person with disabilities, to parking privileges for vehicles displaying international symbol of access, or to parking privileges for certain veterans and military award recipients.

S.B. 2001 expands the conduct that constitutes the offense of unauthorized use of parking designated for persons with disabilities to include standing a vehicle on which DPO license plates issued that include the applicable symbol of access are not displayed and a disabled parking placard is not displayed in a parking space or area designated specifically for individuals with disabilities by a political subdivision or a person who owns or controls private property used for parking as to which a political subdivision has provided for the application of the offense under statutory provisions relating to the offense.

S.B. 2001 expands the conduct that constitutes the offense of unauthorized use of parking designated for persons with disabilities to include, among other conditions that must be met to constitute the offense, standing a vehicle on which are displayed DPO license plates that include the applicable symbol of access in a parking space or area for which statutory provisions relating to privileged parking create an exemption from payment of a fee or penalty imposed by a governmental unit.

S.B. 2001 establishes that the following provisions apply to a person who commits an unauthorized use of parking designated for persons with disabilities offense in which the person stands a vehicle in a parking space or area designated specifically for persons with disabilities by a political subdivision or an applicable person who owns or controls private property used for parking when the vehicle displays DPO license plates other than a DPO license plate that includes the applicable symbol of access:

· the provision making such an offense a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $25 or more than $200 or not more than 10 hours of community service, subject to certain exceptions; and

· the requirement for the court to dismiss a charge for such an offense under certain conditions.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.