Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION
                Introduced House Bill 5644
              By Delegate DeVault [Introduced February 13, 2024; Referred to the Committee on Technology and Infrastructure]
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 A BILL to amend and reenact §§17A-3-14i of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; to
           amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §17A-3-14j; and to amend
           and reenact §17C-13-6, all relating to creating a special military license plate and placard
           for 80% disabled veterans.
    Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
    CHAPTER 17A. MOTOR VEHICLE ADMINISTRATION, REGISTRATION,
                CERTIFICATE OF TITLE, AND ANTITHEFT PROVISIONS
    ARTICLE 3. ORIGINAL AND RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION; ISSUANCE OF
              CERTIFICATES OF TITLE.
    §17A-3-14i.      Manufacturing of   certain special registration plates;   rulemaking.
           (a) For all registration plates authorized pursuant to the provisions of §17A-3-14a, §17A-3-
 14b, §17A-3-14c, §17A-3-14d, §17A-3-14e, §17A-3-14f, §17A-3-14g, and §17A-3-14h, and §17A-
 3-14j, the division is not required to keep a stockpile of such plates, but may create a process for
 the issuance of such plates by special order.
           (b) The division may propose rules for legislative approval in accordance with the
 provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq. of this code to administer the issuance of all special registration
 plates authorized in                this article.
    §17A-3-14j. Special military plates for 80% to 99% disabled veterans.
           (a) The division may issue special plates to disabled veterans that have an 80% to 99%
 disability rating as determined by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Registration plates issued
 pursuant to this section are exempt from all registration fees otherwise required by the provisions
 of this chapter. A surviving spouse may continue to use the license plate of his or her deceased
 spouse that was issued pursuant to this section until the surviving spouse dies, remarries, or does
 not renew the license plate.
           (b) A qualified applicant may obtain a second license plate as described in this section for
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  use on a passenger vehicle titled in the name of the applicant. The division shall charge for the
  second plate a one-time fee of $10, to be deposited into the State Road Fund, which is in addition
 to all other fees required by this chapter.
           (c) The applicant shall present satisfactory proof as determined by the commissioner as
 evidence of qualification for any plate authorized in this section.
           (d) An applicant qualified to receive a special plate under subsection (a) of this section, or
 qualified to receive a registration fee exemption under §17A-10-8(6) of this code as a former
 prisoner of war, may choose to transfer the registration fee exemptions to a special registration
 plate for military personnel for which the applicant also qualifies under §17A-3-14b of this code
 instead of receiving the honorary military plate pursuant to this section.
      CHAPTER 17C. TRAFFIC REGULATIONS AND LAWS OF THE ROAD.
     ARTICLE 3. TRAFFIC SIGNS, SIGNALS, AND MARKINGS.
     §17C-13-6. Stopping, standing, or parking privileges for persons with a mobility impairment; disabled veterans; definitions; qualification; special registration plates and removable windshield placards; expiration, application; violation; penalties.
            (a)(1) The commissioner may issue up to two special registration plates or removable
  windshield placards to a person with a mobility impairment or a West Virginia organization which
  transports persons with disabilities and facilitates the mobility of its customers, patients, students,
  or persons otherwise placed under its responsibility.
            (2) Special registration plates or placards may only be issued for placement on a Class A
  or Class G motor vehicle registered under the provisions of §17A-3-1 et seq. of this code.
            (3) The applicant shall specify whether he or she is applying for a special registration plate,
  a removable windshield placard, or both on the application form prescribed and furnished by the
  commissioner.
           (4) The applicant shall submit, with the application, a certificate issued by any physician,
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 chiropractor, advanced nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant who is licensed in this state,
 stating that the applicant has a mobility impairment, or that the applicant is an organization which
 regularly transports a person with a mobility impairment as defined in this section. The physician,
 chiropractor, advanced nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant shall specify in the certificate
 whether the disability is temporary or permanent. A disability which is temporary is one expected
 to last for a limited duration and improve during the applicant’s life. A disability which is permanent
 is one which is expected to last during the duration of the applicant’s life.
           (5) Upon receipt of the completed application, the physician’s certificate and the regular
 registration fee for the applicant’s vehicle class, if the commissioner finds that the applicant
 qualifies for the special registration plate or a removable windshield placard as provided in this
 section, he or she shall issue to the applicant a special registration plate (upon remittance of the
 regular registration fee) or a removable windshield placard (red for temporary and blue for
 permanent), or both. Upon request, the commissioner shall also issue to any otherwise qualified
 applicant one additional placard having the same expiration date as the applicant’s original
 placard. The placard shall be displayed by hanging it from the interior rearview mirror of the motor
 vehicle so that it is conspicuously visible from outside the vehicle when parked in a designated
 accessible parking space. The placard may be removed from the rearview mirror whenever the
 vehicle is being operated to ensure clear vision and safe driving. Only in the event that there is no
 suitable rearview mirror in the vehicle may the placard be displayed on the dashboard of the
 vehicle.
           (6) Organizations which transport people with disabilities will be provided with a placard
 which will permit them to park in a designated area for the length of time necessary to load and
 unload passengers. These vehicles must be moved to a nondesignated space once the loading or
 unloading process is complete.
           (7) Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in this section, any military veteran that
 possesses a specialty plate for 80% to 99% disabled military veterans and has fully complied with
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 the provisions and requirements of §17A-3-14j shall be issued by the commissioner up to two
 special license plates for vehicles titled in the veteran's name. Special plates for 80% to 99%
 disabled veterans shall be valid for the duration of the eligible military veteran’s life.
           (8) Any disabled veteran who has a disability rating of 100%, who has been acknowledged
 as such under the guidelines of this code, shall be given two placards that identify them as such
 and provided with the ability to park in handicapped parking spaces. The second placard shall be
 honored and effective regardless of the vehicle in which it is presented, the license plate on the
 vehicle in which it is presented, or the registration information of the vehicle in which it is presented
 and, absent a clear showing of fraud, theft, or malfeasance associated with the presentation of the
 placard, shall carry all the privileges associated with the original.
           (b) As used in this section, the following terms have the meanings ascribed to them in this
 subsection:
           (1) A person or applicant with a "mobility impairment" means a person who is a citizen of
 West Virginia and as determined by a physician, allopath, or osteopath, chiropractor, advanced
 nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant licensed to practice in West Virginia:
           (A) Cannot walk 200 feet without stopping to rest;
           (B) Cannot walk without the use of or assistance from a brace, cane, crutch, prosthetic
 device, wheelchair, other assistive device, or another person;
           (C) Is restricted by lung disease to such an extent that the person’s force (respiratory)
 expiratory volume for one second, when measured by spirometry, is less than one liter or the
 arterial oxygen tension is less than 60 mm/hg on room air at rest;
           (D) Uses portable oxygen;
           (E) Has a cardiac condition to such an extent that the person’s functional limitations are
 classified in severity as Class III or Class IV according to standards established by the American
 Heart Association; or
           (F) Is severely limited in his or her ability to walk because of an arthritic, neurological, or
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 other orthopedic condition;
           (2) "Special registration plate" means a registration plate that displays the international
 symbol of access, as adopted by the Rehabilitation International Organization in 1969 at its
 Eleventh World Congress on Rehabilitation of the Disabled, in a color that contrasts with the
 background, in letters and numbers the same size as those on the plate, and which may be used in
 lieu of a regular registration plate;
           (3) "Removable windshield placard" (permanent or temporary) means a two-sided,
 hanger-style placard measuring three inches by nine and one-half inches, with all of the following
 on each side:
           (A) The international symbol of access, measuring at least three inches in height, centered
 on the placard, in white on a blue background for permanent designations and in white on a red
 background for temporary designations;
           (B) An identification number measuring one inch in height;
           (C) An expiration date in numbers measuring one inch in height for a temporary placard;
 and
           (D) The seal or other identifying symbol of the issuing authority;
           (4) "Regular registration fee" means the standard registration fee for a vehicle of the same
 class as the applicant’s vehicle;
           (5) "Public entity" means state or local government or any department, agency, special
 purpose district, or other instrumentality of a state or local government;
           (6) "Public facility" means all or any part of any buildings, structures, sites, complexes,
 roads, parking lots, or other real or personal property, including the site where the facility is
 located;
           (7) "Place or places of public accommodation" means a facility or facilities operated by a
 private entity whose operations affect commerce and fall within at least one of the following
 categories:
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            (A) Inns, hotels, motels, and other places of lodging;
            (B) Restaurants, bars, or other establishments serving food or drink;
            (C) Motion picture houses, theaters, concert halls, stadiums, or other places of exhibition
  or entertainment;
            (D) Auditoriums, convention centers, lecture halls, or other places of public gatherings;
            (E) Bakeries, grocery stores, clothing stores, hardware stores, shopping centers, or other
  sales or rental establishments;
            (F) Laundromats, dry cleaners, banks, barber and beauty shops, travel agencies, shoe
  repair shops, funeral parlors, gas or service stations, offices of accountants and attorneys,
  pharmacies, insurance offices, offices of professional health care providers, hospitals, or other
  service establishments;
           (G) Terminals, depots, or other stations used for public transportation;
           (H) Museums, libraries, galleries, or other places of public display or collection;
           (I) Parks, zoos, amusement parks, or other places of recreation;
           (J) Public or private nursery, elementary, secondary, undergraduate, or post-graduate
 schools or other places of learning and day care centers, senior citizen centers, homeless
 shelters, food banks, adoption agencies, or other social services establishments; and
           (K) Gymnasiums, health spas, bowling alleys, golf courses, or other places of exercise or
 recreation;
           (8) "Commercial facility" means a facility whose operations affect commerce and which are
 intended for nonresidential use by a private entity;
           (9) "Accessible parking" formerly known as "handicapped parking" is the present phrase
 consistent with language within the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
           (10) "Parking enforcement personnel" includes any law-enforcement officer as defined by
 §30-29-1 of this code, and private security guards, parking personnel, and other personnel
 authorized by a city, county, or the state to issue parking citations.
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           Any person who falsely or fraudulently obtains or seeks to obtain the special plate or the
 removable windshield placard provided for in this section, and any person who falsely certifies that
 a person is mobility impaired in order that an applicant may be issued the special registration plate
 or windshield placard under this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, in
 addition to any other penalty he or she may otherwise incur, shall be fined $500. Any person who
 fabricates, uses, or sells unofficially issued windshield placards to any person or organization is
 committing a fraudulent act and is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, in
 addition to any other penalty he or she may otherwise incur, shall be fined $500 per placard
 fabricated, used, or sold. Any person who fabricates, uses, or sells unofficially issued identification
 cards to any person or organization is committing a fraudulent act and is guilty of a misdemeanor
 and, upon conviction thereof, in addition to any other penalty he or she may otherwise incur, shall
 be fined $700 per identification card fabricated, used, or sold. Any person who fabricates, uses, or
 sells unofficially issued labels imprinted with a future expiration date to any person or organization
 is committing a fraudulent act and is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, in
 addition to any other penalty he or she may otherwise incur, shall be fined $700. Any person
 covered by this section who sells or gives away their officially issued windshield placard to any
 person or organization not qualified to apply for or receive the placard and then reapplies for a new
 placard on the basis it was stolen is committing a fraudulent act and is guilty of a misdemeanor
 and, upon conviction thereof, in addition to any other penalty he or she, or they may otherwise
 incur, shall lose their right to receive or use a special placard or special license plate for a period of
 not less than five years.
           (c) The commissioner shall set the expiration date for special registration plates on the last
 day of a given month and year, to be valid for a minimum of one year but not more than five years,
 after which time a new application must be submitted to the commissioner. After the commissioner
 receives the new application, signed by a certified physician, chiropractor, advanced nurse
 practitioner, or physician’s assistant if required under this subsection, the commissioner shall
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 issue: (i) A new special registration plate or new permanent or temporary removable windshield
 placard; or (ii) official labels imprinted with the new expiration date and designed so as to be
 placed over the old dates on the original registration plate or windshield placard: Provided, That a
 new application under this subsection must not be accompanied by a certificate pursuant to §17C-
 13-6(a)(4) of this code if a prior application is on file with the commissioner, such application
 includes a certificate issued pursuant to §17C-13-6(a)(4) of this code, such certificate specifies
 that the applicant’s disability is permanent for life, and such certificate was made within 10 years of
 the new application.
           (d) The commissioner shall set the expiration date of temporary removable windshield
 placards to be valid for a period of approximately six months after the application was received and
 approved by the commissioner. Permanent removable windshield placards are valid for the
 duration of the applicant’s life.
           (e) The commissioner shall issue to each applicant who is granted a special registration
 plate or windshield placard an identification card bearing the applicant’s name, assigned
 identification number, and expiration date. The applicant shall thereafter carry this identification
 card on his or her person whenever parking in an accessible parking space. The identification card
 shall be identical in design for both registration plates and removable windshield placards.
           (f) An accessible parking space should com