Section 5004.3 Of Article 8. Special Plates From California Vehicle Code >> Division 3. >> Chapter 1. >> Article 8.
5004.3
. (a) Subject to subdivision (d), the department shall
establish the California Legacy License Plate Program and create and
issue a series of specialized license plates known as California
Legacy License Plates that replicate the look of California license
plates from the state's past. The design of the plates shall be
identical, to the extent the department determines it to be
reasonably feasible under current manufacturing processes, to a
regular license plate, except as provided in subdivision (b).
(b) The California Legacy License Plates shall consist of one or
more of the following designs:
(1) Yellow background with black lettering per the appearance of
California license plates issued by the department from 1956 to 1962,
inclusive.
(2) Black background with yellow lettering per the appearance of
California license plates issued by the department from 1965 to 1968,
inclusive.
(3) Blue background with yellow lettering per the appearance of
California license plates issued by the department from 1969 to 1986,
inclusive.
(c) An applicant for the specialized license plates described in
subdivision (a), who shall be the owner or lessee of the vehicle on
which the plates will be displayed, may choose to either accept a
license plate character sequence assigned by the department or
request a combination of letters or numbers or both, subject to
Section 5105.
(d) In addition to the regular fees for an original registration
or renewal of registration, the following additional fees shall be
paid for the issuance, renewal, retention, or transfer of the
specialized license plates:
(1) Fifty dollars ($50) for the original issuance of the plates.
(2) Forty dollars ($40) for a renewal of registration with the
plates.
(3) Fifteen dollars ($15) for transfer of the plates to another
vehicle.
(4) Thirty-five dollars ($35) for each substitute replacement
plate.
(5) Thirty-eight dollars ($38), when the payment of renewal fees
is not required as specified in Section 4000 and the holder of the
specialized license plates retains the plates. The fee shall be due
at the expiration of the registration year of the vehicle to which
the specialized license plates were assigned. This paragraph shall
not apply when a plate character sequence is assigned by the
department pursuant to subdivision (c).
(e) Sections 5106 and 5108 do not apply to the specialized license
plates issued pursuant to this section.
(f) The department shall not issue California Legacy License
Plates for a vehicle that is exempt from the payment of registration
fees pursuant to Section 9101 or 9103.
(g) (1) The department shall not establish the California Legacy
License Plate Program until the department has received not less than
7,500 paid applications for plates. The department shall collect and
hold applications for the plates. The department shall not issue a
specialized license plate until it has received not less than 7,500
paid applications for any one of the particular plates within the
time period prescribed in this section.
(2) The department shall have until January 1, 2015, to receive
the required number of applications. If, after that date, 7,500 paid
applications have not been received for any one of the three plates
described in subdivision (b), the department shall immediately refund
to all applicants all fees or deposits that have been collected.
(h) (1) Upon a determination by the department that there are
sufficient funds for the program, moneys shall be available, upon
appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for the necessary
administrative costs of establishing the California Legacy License
Plate Program.
(2) After deducting its administrative costs under this
subdivision, the department shall deposit any additional revenue
derived from the issuance, renewal, transfer, retention, and
substitution of the specialized license plates into the California
Environmental License Plate Fund, for appropriation by the
Legislature pursuant to existing law.