Legislature(2011 - 2012)HOUSE FINANCE 519
02/24/2011 01:30 PM House FINANCE
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB7 | |
| HB19 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 7 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 19 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HOUSE BILL NO. 19
"An Act relating to special request registration
plates; and providing for an effective date."
[3:05:36]
REPRESENTATIVE BOB LYNN, SPONSOR, reported that during a
visit to Indiana he had seen "In God We Trust" license
plates and thought they would be good to have in Alaska. He
added that 250,000 of the plates had been issued in
Indiana. He detailed that the special license plate would
be available only upon request and would reflect the
patriotism and cultural heritage of other citizens around
the country. He described the procedure for issuing the
license plates. A driver would be required to request a
national motto plate and pay a $30 fee. He listed other
states that had the special license plate, including
Kentucky, Virginia, and South Carolina.
Co-Chair Stoltze asked whether there had been opposition to
the item. Representative Lynn responded that there had not
been.
Representative Costello queried the design of the license
plate.
THOMAS REIKER, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE BOB LYNN, replied that
the issue had come up in the House State Affairs Committee.
The Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) would work with the
sponsor regarding the design; he believed they would
generate a design based on the existing plates in other
states.
Representative Doogan did not want to have future requests
for license plates by groups with a "different central
figure in the pantheon." He asked for assurance that the
state would not be asked for another license plate saying
we trust in anybody else, such as Thor. Representative Lynn
responded that anyone in the legislature could sponsor any
bill they wanted, but he trusted the State Affairs
Committee to not allow such a proposal to get far.
Representative Doogan was not concerned about other members
of the legislature; people could file law suits on
practically anything.
3:10:32 PM
Representative Doogan queried the experience of other
states with the "In God We Trust" motto on license plates
in terms of legal problems. Representative Lynn responded
that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in Indiana
had raised questions, but the questions were not about the
motto. The questions were related to the fact that Indiana
was going to issue the plate without an additional fee. He
believed that went no place; Indiana did not charge an
additional fee for the license plate. However, HB 19
required a fee of $30 like other specialty license plates
and was revenue neutral.
Mr. Reiker added that the controlling case from the U.S.
Supreme Court was Lynch v. Donnelly; the ruling listed
several different practices that the federal government
undertook that could be construed as religious. One of the
practices was printing "In God We Trust" on coins. He
quoted the majority opinion: "Those practices, including
printing 'In God We Trust' on coins, are not understood as
conveying government approval of particular religious
beliefs." He summed that "In God We Trust" had always been
interpreted by the court to be more an expression of the
national motto than an expression of religious belief. He
did not think the measure would open the state up to other
religions claiming equal protection.
Representative Gara stated that he did not oppose the bill,
and that he was a "big fan of God." However, he was
concerned that there would be more license-plate bills. He
pointed to another that had already been filed. He thought
a person who wanted to convey something political or
religious on their car could get a bumper sticker. He
believed people should be able to say whatever they wanted
on their car, house, or T-shirt. He did not see a
compelling need for the legislation, although he was not
opposed to it.
Representative Wilson pointed out that one benefit to the
state would be the revenue generated for the general fund.
Co-Chair Stoltze noted that the revenue generated would not
go to a charity or specific program. He asked whether the
revenue would cover the costs of producing the plates.
Representative Lynn responded in the affirmative and
reiterated that specialty license plates were designed to
be revenue neutral.
SHELLY MELLOT, MANAGER, ANCHORAGE DIVISION OF MOTOR
VEHICLES, DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION (via teleconference)
testified that the bill would authorize the creation of a
new plate for anyone wanting to purchase an "In God We
Trust" license plate. She stressed that the plate was not
for raising funds and would not require the creation of a
special fund for appropriation by the legislature. The cost
for establishing the plate would be minimal; therefore, the
DMV had attached a zero fiscal note. The cost of the plate
to the applicant would be $30 under the bill, in addition
to the registration fee and any tax established by local
governments. The cost of each plate to the state would be
about $10; the remaining fees collected would go into the
general fund.
3:15:49 PM
Ms. Mellot continued that typically the DMV worked with the
impacted entities on the design of the plate; in this case
the DMV would work with the sponsors of the legislation on
the initial design. The DMV would then work with law
enforcement personnel to ensure that officers could easily
identify the plate numbers for their purposes. Finally, she
reported that the design would go before the commissioner
of the Department of Administration for final approval
before moving into production.
Co-Chair Stoltze queried the position of the
administration. Ms. Mellot responded that the division was
neutral.
Co-Chair Stoltze requested details about the possible
revenue that could result to the state from the measure.
Ms. Mellot offered to get the information.
Representative Doogan stated that he supported the bill.
However, he pointed out that it was easy to support a bill
that says "In God We Trust," since the phrase was the
national motto. He stated for the record that it would be
much more difficult for him to support other bills that had
more "political baggage" than HB 19. He emphasized that he
did not want to take committee time to debate about the
issue.
Co-Chair Stoltze stated that HB 19 was before the committee
because it was ecumenical and fairly uncontroversial.
Vice-chair Fairclough MOVED to report HB 19 out of
committee with individual recommendations and the
accompanying fiscal note. There being NO OBJECTION, it was
so ordered.
HB 19 was REPORTED out of committee with a "do pass"
recommendation and with attached previously published zero
impact fiscal note: FN1, ADM.
3:20:05 PM
Co-Chair Thomas reviewed the schedule for the following
week.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB7NEWFN(JUD)-DPS-02-22-11.pdf |
HFIN 2/24/2011 1:30:00 PM |
HB 7 |
| HB7(JUD)NEWFN-DOC02-23-11.pdf |
HFIN 2/24/2011 1:30:00 PM |
HB 7 |
| HB7 DPS HFIN NEW ZERO FN.pdf |
HFIN 2/24/2011 1:30:00 PM |
HB 7 |
| HB7 Gara Amendment Failed.pdf |
HFIN 2/24/2011 1:30:00 PM |
HB 7 |