PDA

View Full Version : Texas Plates Optional



palani
8th December 2011, 03:18 PM
http://www.thenewspaper.com/rlc/pix/txoops.jpg

http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/36/3656.asp

Texas License Plates Become Optional
Texas legislature accidentally deletes penalty for failing to display a license plate.

Texas license plateA number of special interest groups have fought over the design of specialty license plates in Texas over the past few weeks. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People cheered the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) board last month for rejecting a "Sons of Confederate Veterans" plate the group found racially offensive. An American Indian group blasted a plate honoring the Buffalo Soldiers, a regiment of black troops who served in the US Army from the end of the Civil War through 1951. These plate conflicts may turn out to be unnecessary because beginning on January 1, 2012, the use of license plates in the Lone Star State becomes optional.

According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, current law mandates the display of two license plates -- one at the front and another at the rear of a vehicle. Failure to comply is a misdemeanor offense punishable by a $200 fine under Texas Code Section 502.404. As part of a sweeping revision of the state vehicle code, however, that provision will soon disappear.

House Bill 2357 was intended as a non-controversial 234-page update to existing law. It passed the state House on May 29 voted 139-6 and the state Senate 31-0, receiving the signature of Governor Rick Perry (R) on June 17.

"The motor vehicle statutes were codified in 1995, but there has not been a complete reorganization of substance since before that time," Representative Joseph Pickett (D-El Paso) wrote in his justification of the legislation. "This bill directly addresses the problem of the statutes being outdated in regard to automation and organization."

As part of the update, the new law deleted the license plate statute, returning parts of it to Section 502.473 and 504.943. In moving around the legal language, the bill went through the entire legislative process without anybody noticing that a key line was deleted without providing a replacement: "An offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $200."

Without the line, it is not clear whether police officers or courts would have the authority to impose a punishment on drivers who chose not to display license plates or registration stickers, especially in jurisdictions that still use red light cameras. Driving with a false or altered plate remains a misdemeanor, however. Lawmakers will not have a chance to remedy their mistake until January 8, 2013 when the legislature reconvenes, unless Governor Perry calls a special session specifically to address the license plate issue.

A copy of the legislation as enacted is available in a 650k PDF file at the source link below.

Source: PDF File House Bill 2357 (Texas Legislature, 6/17/2011)

Dogman
8th December 2011, 03:20 PM
If true, it wont last long.

palani
8th December 2011, 03:26 PM
If true, it wont last long.

Dunno. Georgia (it is said) has made plates optional.

Dogman
8th December 2011, 03:31 PM
Dunno. Georgia (it is said) has made plates optional. It would be nice, but I just cannot see it happening. The walking donuts, rely on plates way too much for id'ing everyone.

palani
8th December 2011, 04:01 PM
It would be nice, but I just cannot see it happening. The walking donuts, rely on plates way too much for id'ing everyone.

The system is proud of the fact that everything they do is optional. They have to make offers like this occasionally in order to continue to convince themselves.

chad
8th December 2011, 05:19 PM
nothing that you tow behind your truck/car in wisconsin requires plates. boats, campers, regular trailers, nothing.

palani
8th December 2011, 05:33 PM
nothing that you tow behind your truck/car in wisconsin requires plates. boats, campers, regular trailers, nothing.
Your homes have license plates. Ours don't.

chad
8th December 2011, 05:38 PM
fire numbers you mean?

palani
8th December 2011, 05:43 PM
fire numbers you mean?

Is that what they are? See them all over the place by the mailboxes.

chad
8th December 2011, 05:48 PM
Is that what they are? See them all over the place by the mailboxes.

yeah, they're there because the snowplows regularly knock down our mailboxes. the fire numbers are on flexible sticks (so they don't get destroyed). they need a number to go to for fire calls, ems, etc. also, a lot of people up north don't get rural mail- they have a po box in town- so that's the "address" so to speak for fire and ems calls.

Glass
8th December 2011, 06:01 PM
Lawmakers will not have a chance to remedy their mistake until January 8, 2013 when the legislature reconvenes

Is this the correct date? They won't reconvene until 2013?

Dogman
8th December 2011, 06:09 PM
Is this the correct date? They won't reconvene until 2013? Yep!

Joe King
8th December 2011, 07:11 PM
Yep!
They convene for five Months every two years, I do believe, right?

Gov would have to call an emergency session to anything before then.

Dogman
8th December 2011, 07:16 PM
They convene for five Months every two years, I do believe, right?

Gov would have to call an emergency session to anything before then. 2013 is their next play time, I will not call it work!


How often does the legislature meet?

The Legislature of the State of Texas, operating under the biennial system, convenes its regular sessions at noon on the second Tuesday in January of odd-numbered years. The maximum duration of a regular session is 140 days. The governor is given authority under the state constitution to convene the legislature at other times during the biennium. Such sessions are known as called or special sessions and are reserved for legislation that the governor deems critically important in the conduct of state affairs. Called sessions are limited to a period of 30 days, during which the legislature is permitted to pass laws only on subjects submitted by the governor in calling for the session.

http://www.house.state.tx.us/resources/frequently-asked-questions/