An Act to amend and reenact § 46.2-739 of the Code of Virginia, relating to vehicle registration fees; disabled veterans.
HB94 amends Virginia law governing special license plates for disabled veterans. The bill authorizes the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue special permanent red, white, and blue “DV” plates to veterans with a service-connected disability, and it continues to allow those plates to be transferred to an unremarried surviving spouse after the veteran’s death. It also preserves the separate category of DV disabled parking plates for veterans whose disabilities limit or impair their ability to walk, with those plates displaying the international symbol of access and authorizing use of accessible parking spaces.
The bill also clarifies that no annual registration fee and no annual plate fee are required for one personally owned vehicle of a qualifying disabled veteran or unremarried surviving spouse, so long as the vehicle displays the qualifying special plate or the standard passenger plate. In addition, it exempts these plates from certain provisions in § 46.2-725, further aligning the fee treatment for these veteran plates with existing exemptions in Virginia’s motor vehicle code.
HB94 changes § 46.2-739 of the Code of Virginia by reaffirming and refining the fee exemptions and plate eligibility rules for disabled veterans and their unremarried surviving spouses. Its practical effect is to preserve free registration for one qualifying vehicle, maintain access to special DV plates, and continue the distinction between plates that merely identify a service-connected disabled veteran and plates that also confer disabled parking privileges. The bill affects the Department of Motor Vehicles, disabled veterans, and surviving spouses who qualify under the statute.
The available context suggests the bill was noncontroversial and supportive of veterans’ benefits. There are no recorded committee transcripts or roll-call votes indicating opposition, and the bill was enacted as Chapter 39. The overall sentiment appears favorable, with the legislation framed as a straightforward fee and plate-related accommodation for disabled veterans and their families.
No specific points of contention are reflected in the provided record. The bill’s structure does draw a clear line between service-connected disabled veteran plates and plates that authorize disabled parking access, but there is no evidence in the available materials of disagreement over that distinction, the fee exemptions, or the surviving-spouse transfer provision. The absence of committee debate and votes suggests little or no opposition in the legislative process.