Section 32-6-64 License Plate Design; Numbering, Sponsoring, and Manufacturing of License Plates; Release of Personal Information; Reissuance.

(a)(1) The design of license plates, including all emblems, slogans, symbols, or characters appearing on the plates, shall be by rule as adopted by the Commissioner of Revenue, and as otherwise specified by law. The face of the license plate to be displayed shall be fully treated with a reflective material which will increase the nighttime visibility and legibility of the plate. (2) Characters on the license plate which designate the county of issuance shall be numeric, and all numerals on the license plates shall be no smaller than two and three-fourths inches in height. The following numbering scheme shall be used: a. Jefferson County, 1; Mobile County, 2; Montgomery County, 3. b. All other counties shall be ranked alphabetically and assigned consecutive numbers beginning with 4 and concluding with 67. c. The Department of Revenue shall be responsible for the numbering of distinctive license plates and shall establish a system to minimize duplication of license plate numbers. License plates that shall be approved for manufacture under subsection (b) shall be numbered or personalized. (b) The sponsoring organization of any new or reissued distinctive license plate that is not of an in-state college or in-state university as provided in subsection (b) of Section 32-6-150, or the Alabama Gold Star Family license plate as provided in Section 32-6-630 or a military or veteran related category shall assure a minimum quantity of 250 registrations in order for the proposed plate to qualify for production consideration by the legislative oversight committee under the provisions of Section 32-6-67. (1) The procedure to assure the quantity minimum for a distinctive license plate shall be as follows: a. The sponsoring organization shall apply to the Department of Revenue for approval for the proposed distinctive license plate from the legislative oversight committee. A sponsoring organization shall be limited to one distinctive license plate design per application. At the time of application, and upon payment of the application fee required in paragraph b., if applicable, the sponsoring organization shall submit a design for the plate or logo for the quantity class being applied for as described below: 1. Quantity Class 1 (250 to 999 registrations). A new distinctive license plate category, or an existing distinctive license plate to be reissued, in which registrations are estimated to be at least 250, but less than 1,000, shall be in conformity with the design approved by the legislative oversight committee for license plates in this quantity class. This plate shall include a space designated on the left side of the license plate, not exceeding two and one-half inches in width and height, in which an appropriate emblem, slogan, or logo design may be applied to represent the organization for whom the distinctive license plate is issued. Each proposed emblem, slogan, symbol, or logo shall be subject to the approval of the legislative oversight committee. 2. Quantity Class 2 (1,000 or greater registrations). This quantity class may use the logo system described for Quantity Class 1, or may use a unique design for the entire plate which is approved by the legislative oversight committee and meets all other design and manufacture requirements of Alabama law. b. Effective January 1, 2022, each sponsoring organization shall submit an application fee equal to the cost of producing the distinctive license plate template not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100) at the time the initial application is made, the funds of which shall be distributed by the Comptroller to the Department of Corrections to cover the costs of producing the template of the distinctive license plate for the sponsoring organization. On or before October 1, 2021, and by each October 1 thereafter, the Department of Corrections shall certify the cost of production to the legislative oversight committee for the subsequent calendar year. c. After the legislative oversight committee approval and notification to the Department of Revenue, the department shall also coordinate with the Comptroller to establish funding procedures for depositing and maintaining monies held pending issuance of the new category of license plates. d. Each person desiring to register a vehicle in the new category shall make application and shall remit, as a commitment to purchase, the additional fee associated with the license plate category in a manner as prescribed by rule of the Commissioner of Revenue. Any credit card processing fee associated with the transaction shall be paid by the person making the commitment to purchase the distinctive license plate and shall be nonrefundable. e. The Department of Revenue shall deduct from the additional fee and retain a two and one-half percent commission. The balance shall be forwarded to the Comptroller to be retained in escrow, until such time as the revenue received is equal to or greater than the minimum amount required to issue license plates in that category. If, after one year from the date of notification of approval by the legislative oversight committee, the number of subscribers for a category fails to reach 250 for Quantity Class 1, or fails to reach 1,000 for Quantity Class 2, the Comptroller shall pay the money in escrow to the sponsoring organization and no further consideration for production of this proposed distinctive plate shall be made under this application. In addition, the sponsoring organization may not submit another application for a distinctive license plate for a period of one year from the date the commitment to purchase period ended. f. Upon determination by the Department of Revenue that a sufficient number of applications for a plate category has been received, the department shall initiate the ordering processes for design and manufacture of the approved license plate. At that time, the Comptroller shall pay out of the escrow account the amounts referred to in Section 32-6-68. (2) Notwithstanding any other provisions to the contrary, except where specifically provided by this subsection, no distinctive license plates shall be reissued unless the following requirements are met: a. For Quantity Class 1 distinctive license plates, there shall have been issued in the prior license year a minimum of 250 license plates. b. For Quantity Class 2 distinctive license plates, there shall have been issued in the prior license year a minimum of 1,000 license plates. (3) The use of distinctive license plate categories shall be limited to use on passenger cars, pick-up trucks, and self-propelled campers or house cars. (c)(1) The Department of Corrections is directed to supply all license plates and revalidation devices required under this subdivision. The amounts charged by the Department of Corrections for the manufacture of revalidation devices shall not be less than that charged for the manufacture of license plates on a per item basis. (2) The Department of Corrections shall maintain an accurate system of recordkeeping which shall trace and account for the handling and distribution of each plate and revalidation device throughout the manufacturing process until the items are distributed to each county. (d) After the five-year license plate has been in use for a period of three years, the Department of Corrections may manufacture all subsequent license plates for the remaining two years of the period from a metal of less durability and quality than the metal used in manufacturing the five-year license plates. (e)(1) The department shall provide the owner or owners of a motor vehicle who register a license plate provided in this subsection the ability to opt-in to authorize the release of certain personal information or to opt-out to restrict the release of certain personal information by the department to the sponsoring organization, college, or university. The license plates that shall be subject to the opt-in and opt-out provisions are as follows: a. A distinctive license plate issued pursuant to this section. b. A collegiate or university distinctive license plate issued pursuant to Section 32-6-150. c. Other distinctive license plates as authorized by the legislative oversight committee. (2) Each owner of the motor vehicle may designate his or her consent through the opt-in authorization to release certain personal information included within a motor vehicle registration record to the sponsoring organization, college, or university. The opt-in authorization shall be made at the time of initial registration through the licensing official for a license plate as specified in subdivision (1). Subsequent opt-in authorizations shall be made directly to the department. As used in this subsection, the term personal information includes only the following information: a. Owner name. b. Owner address. c. Owner email address, if applicable. (3) Each owner of the motor vehicle may restrict the release of personal information included within a motor vehicle registration record for a license plate as specified in subdivision (1) to the sponsoring organization, college, or university by selecting to opt-out. The opt-out selection shall be made directly to the department. (4) The subsequent opt-in authorization provided in subdivision (2) and opt-out selection provided in subdivision (3) shall be made in a manner as prescribed by the department. (5) The sponsoring organization of the distinctive license plate or each college or university for which a distinctive license plate has been issued may make an annual request to the department for the listing of the owner authorized opt-in disclosures. The sponsoring organization in receipt of the listing shall be prohibited from the resale or disclosure of the information to third parties without written consent from the owner to whom the information pertains. (f) All proposed distinctive license plates and the continued issuance of all existing distinctive license plates shall be subject to the approval and oversight of the legislative oversight committee under Section 32-6-67 and this section, except for the following: (1) In-state collegiate or in-state university category license plates. (2) Military or veteran related category license plates. (3) Alabama Gold Star Family license plates as provided in Section 32-6-630. (g) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, no distinctive license plate shall be issued after five consecutive years in which the plate has not met the requirements for reissuance provided in this section. This subsection does not apply to military or veteran related categories or Alabama Gold Star Family distinctive license plates. The Commissioner of Revenue may require persons who qualify for military and veteran related categories or Alabama Gold Star Family distinctive license plates to be recertified not more than every five years by providing the licensing official with Form DD214 or any other documentation prescribed by law or rule as evidence of qualification for the license plate. In the event that Form DD214 or other qualifying documentation prescribed by law or rule is unavailable, the applicant shall provide the licensing official with a certification of eligibility from the Department of Veterans Affairs after the applicant provides that office with other authoritative documentation evidencing eligibility for the license plate. (h) Any distinctive license plate not created pursuant to this section shall be subject to the reissuance provisions of this section and Section 32-6-62 unless specifically exempted by law, provided the Alabama Gold Star Family distinctive license plate design in effect on January 1, 2021, shall not be subject to the redesign provisions of Section 32-6-62. (i) The provisions in Act 2021-407 amending this section shall not amend the distribution of the additional fee associated with a distinctive license plate as provided in Section 32-6-68 or as otherwise provided under Article 2 of this chapter.