Collector car, specialty license plates considered

Two bills dealing with unique license plates were heard by the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee March 7.

LB216, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash, would create special interest license plates that would be available to car club members who own motor vehicles that are unaltered from original specifications and are collected, preserved, restored or maintained for leisure.

One special interest license plate would be issued to a qualified applicant to be affixed to the rear of a vehicle. The additional fee for a special interest plate fee would be $50.

Coash said six states have a general policy requiring vehicles to have two license plates but permit one plate for special interest vehicles. He said such a policy would mirror the current historical license plates offered in Nebraska for cars that are at least 30 years old.

Owners of collector cars would benefit from LB216, Coash said, because some cars are designed without a bracket for front license plates. Consequently, some car owners must drill holes in expensive vehicles to abide by state law, he said.

Loy Todd, president of the Nebraska New Car & Truck Association, testified in support of LB216, saying many states are able to provide adequate law enforcement with single plates. The number of cars designed without accommodations for front license plates has risen, he said, adding that front license plates hurt the value of such vehicles.

No one testified in opposition to LB216.

LB661, introduced by Wilber Sen. Russ Karpisek, would decrease the additional fee for a specialty license plate from $70 to $50.

Current law provides for the issuance of specialty license plates if the state Department of Motor Vehicles receives 500 prepaid applications for an organization’s designed plate.

Karpisek said no organization has amassed 500 applications since specialty plates were first offered in January 2010. He said reducing the fee could lead to additional revenues by increasing the pool of organizations that qualify for the plates.

No one testified in support of or opposition to LB661. The committee took no immediate action on either bill.