2023 -- H 5017

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LC000080

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES

     Introduced By: Representatives Azzinaro, Kennedy, Vella-Wilkinson, Casimiro,
Donovan, Roberts, Place, Noret, Serpa, and Abney

     Date Introduced: January 06, 2023

     Referred To: House Special Legislation

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 31-3-46 and 31-3-62 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-3 entitled

"Registration of Vehicles" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     31-3-46. P.O.W. plates.

     The administrator of the division of motor vehicles shall issue plates designated as “Ex-

P.O.W.” upon application on proper forms furnished by the administrator of the division of motor

vehicles to former prisoners of war (P.O.W.) of World Wars I and II, the Korean conflict, and

Vietnam conflict. The plates may be issued for any motor vehicle eligible for registration as an

automobile, or a commercial vehicle having a gross weight of ten thousand pounds (10,000 lbs)

twelve thousand pounds (12,000 lbs) or less. The applicant shall not be required to pay a registration

fee or service charge for the plate. Upon the death of the holder of any P.O.W. plates, the plates

shall be transferred to his or her surviving spouse for the spouse’s lifetime until he or she remarries.

     31-3-62. National guard plates.

     (a) The administrator of the division of motor vehicles is empowered and authorized to

make available to all active and retired members of the Rhode Island army and air national guard a

special motor vehicle registration plate for any motor vehicle eligible for registration as an

automobile or a commercial vehicle having a gross weight of eight thousand-five hundred pounds

(8,500 lbs.) twelve thousand pounds (12,000 lbs) or less.

     (b) The special motor vehicle registration plate shall carry on it the designation “National

Guard” and shall also carry on it an emblem on the left-hand side of the plate to be designed and

provided by the office of the adjutant general, with the numerals to the right of it.

     (c) The administrator of the division of motor vehicles shall issue the plate upon the

payment of a service charge of twenty dollars ($20.00) and a transfer charge of five dollars ($5.00)

for the plate. All revenues shall be deposited as general revenues.

     (d) For the purposes of this section an active or retired member of the Rhode Island army

and air national guard shall be defined as any person certified by the adjutant general as currently

serving or having retired under honorable conditions in either the Rhode Island army or air national

guard.

     (e) In a state of emergency, any active member of the army or air national guard driving a

vehicle bearing the special motor vehicle registration plate shall be authorized and empowered to

travel upon the highways of the state notwithstanding any driving ban imposed by any state or

municipal authority.

     SECTION 2. Section 31-6-8 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-6 entitled "Registration

Fees" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     31-6-8. Disabled veterans.

     (a) Any veteran who has been honorably discharged from the service of the armed forces

or the merchant marine of the United States in any of the wars or campaigns in which the United

States has been engaged and who, while engaged in these wars or campaigns or as a result of

engagement in these wars or campaigns, by reason of amputation, has lost one or both of his or her

arms, hands, feet, or legs, or who, by reason of other permanent injury, has lost the use of one or

both of his or her arms, hands, feet, or legs, or to whom has been granted a motor vehicle under

chapter 870-2D, United States Public Laws 663, enacted 1946, 79th Congress, or has suitable

documentation from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to establish that the veteran:

     (1) Has a combined service connected disability rating of one hundred percent (100%); or

     (2) Is considered “individually unemployable” due to his or her service-connected

disability, shall be exempt from the payment of any fee for the annual registration of and a license

to operate that motor vehicle.

     (b) The administrator for the division of motor vehicles shall issue to an eligible veteran

for use on an automobile, or on a commercial vehicle having a gross weight of six thousand three

hundred pounds (6,300 lbs.) twelve thousand pounds (12,000 lbs) or less, registration plates

designated “Disabled Veteran.” Upon the death of the holder of “Disabled Veteran” plates, the

plates may be transferred to his or her surviving spouse for his or her lifetime or until he or she

remarries. Only one set of “Disabled Veteran” plates shall be issued to an eligible veteran and only

after certification of eligibility from the Veterans’ Administration or other satisfactory

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documentation of eligibility is presented.

     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect six (6) months after passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- REGISTRATION OF VEHICLES

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     This act would unify the weight limit of vehicles with special plates, including P.O.W.

plates, National Guard plates, and disabled veteran plates, to 12,000 pounds.

     This act would take effect six (6) months after passage.

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