Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Specialty License Plates topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate advances bill adding motorcycle Juneteenth license plate despite debate over redirected $2 classroom fee
Summary
Senate Bill 1057 would add a Juneteenth specialty motorcycle license plate and confirms prior small fee arrangements that redirected $2 to classroom support; the author and committee sparred over whether that $2 should remain diverted from Juneteenth revenues to education.
Senator Goodwin presented Senate Bill 1057 to add a Juneteenth specialty license plate for motorcycles. The author said the original automobile license plate, enacted years earlier, included a $2 allocation to a classroom support fund during difficult budget times and that the motorcycle plate is a logical expansion of the existing specialty plate.
Senator Seifert and others expressed concern about the $2 allocation having gone to classroom support. "I think, it was noble 6 years ago of you to share some of that with education...those needs are still there," Seifert said, arguing that education funding remains an ongoing priority. Senator Goodwin said the current balance in the Juneteenth fund and annual receipts are modest: "I think last year, we had $12,000 to go to Juneteenth. The fund has a hundred thousand dollars," she said, and noted the automobile plate produced about $2,900 for the classroom support fund over six years.
The committee debated optics and trade-offs between supporting Juneteenth activities and classroom grants; some senators signaled they would not support the bill unless the funding allocation were revisited. The committee ultimately advanced the measure on a recorded roll call of 11 ayes and 1 nay.
