By Mr. Speliotis of Danvers, petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3637) of Theodore C. Speliotis and George M. Roaf that the Registrar of Motor Vehicles be directed to issue distinctive license plates for the preservation of open space.  Transportation

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PETITION OF:

Theodore C. Speliotis

George M. Roaf

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In the Year Two Thousand and Seven.

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An Act to create an open space preservation license plate.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1.  Chapter 90 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting at the end of section 2E the following paragraph:—
The registrar shall furnish, upon application, to the owners of private passenger motor vehicles distinctive registration plates bearing the state bird, state flower or other symbol associated with the natural beauty of the Commonwealth.
Any Massachusetts resident may submit a plate design to be chosen as a design for an open space license plate. The decision will be made by a committee consisting of the Registrar of Motor Vehicles or his designee, two members from the House of Representatives, one of whom is appointed by the Speaker of the House and one of whom is appointed by the Minority Leader of the House; two members from the Senate, one of whom is appointed by the Senate President and one of whom is appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate; the Secretary of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs or his designee, and a Chair, who shall be appointed by the Governor. Designs must be submitted to the Commonwealth within sixty (60) days of the enactment of this law and the design must be chosen within sixty (60) days of the deadline.
There shall be a one-time forty-dollar ($40) fee paid for said plate in addition to the established registration fee for passenger motor vehicles, there shall be an annual renewal fee of twenty-five dollars ($25).
The portion of said fee remaining after the deduction of costs directly attributable to issuing said plate shall be transferred to the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs for the sole purpose of acquiring and protecting open space.
Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or specific law to the contrary, the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs is hereby directed to create an Open Space License Plate Fund, and further directed to draft regulations to distribute the proceeds of said fund through an Open Space License Plate Grant Program.