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Committee hears bill to require insurance, proof of daily driver for collector vehicle plates
Summary
The House Transportation Committee heard House Bill 1194, a Department of Licensing request bill that would repeal the exemption allowing collector vehicles and horseless carriages to operate without standard motor-vehicle liability coverage and would require proof of insurance and a second, daily-use vehicle for new collector-plate applicants.
The House Transportation Committee heard House Bill 1194, a Department of Licensing request bill that would repeal the existing exemption for collector vehicles from mandatory motor-vehicle liability requirements and require applicants for collector plates to provide proof of insurance and ownership/registration of a second vehicle for daily use.
The bill matters, agency staff said, because a higher share of collisions involving collector-plate vehicles involve uninsured drivers than the general driving population, and because the current collector-plate program can be used by some drivers as a lower-cost way to avoid annual registration and insurance obligations.
Sandy Meyer, staff to the committee, summarized current law: a typical motor vehicle liability policy must provide minimum coverage levels of $25,000 for bodily injury or death of a single person, $50,000 for two or more people, and $10,000 for injury or property damage. Meyer told the committee collector vehicles and horseless carriages are currently exempt from those requirements and described the Department of Licensing (DOL) authority to issue lifelong collector registrations and horseless carriage plates. Meyer said the exemption would be repealed and, after Jan. 15, 2026, applicants for a collector plate must show a collector-vehicle insurance policy meeting the statutory minimums and proof of ownership and current registration of a second vehicle used for daily driving; DOL may grant exceptions if an owner demonstrates alternative transportation.
Alejandro Sanchez, deputy director at the Washington State Department of Licensing, told the committee the measure is intended to place modest guardrails on a program DOL sees being used beyond its original scope. Sanchez said, “35% of collisions involving collector vehicles are uninsured,” and that figure is “almost double what we see typically on our roadways.” He described the second-vehicle requirement as a negotiated concession with industry and that DOL would allow bypasses where owners can show mass transit use or that a household’s daily vehicle is registered to another person at the same address.
Sponsor Representative Roger Goodman (D-45th) gave a personal example of already carrying insurance on his older cars and said he supports the change. Supporters and some owner groups said most bona fide collector-vehicle owners already carry insurance and would not find the new requirements burdensome; the Washington Off Highway Vehicle Alliance’s Jacob Perry said he would support the bill if the insurance requirement were written as a standard liability requirement rather than a prescriptive collector-specific product and if the horseless-carriage age definition were reconsidered.
Several members pressed DOL on enforcement and fiscal impacts. Sanchez said DOL’s enforcement would be at the point of initial issuance or registration and would rely on existing law-enforcement mechanisms (for example, traffic stops) to detect noncompliance afterward; DOL does not currently perform ongoing enforcement of issued credentials. The fiscal note posted by staff estimates one-time information-technology costs of $222,000 in fiscal year 2026 to modify DOL’s systems and costs for print-and-mail notifications; revenue impact was described as indeterminate but anticipated to be positive. DOL staff said data indicate about 10% of collector-plate registrations currently lack a second registered driver and that tens of thousands of new applicants could come in annually under the changed rules.
Committee members asked for detail on exemptions for limited-use owners (for example, older drivers who only use vehicles for short local trips) and about whether the bill applies retroactively; DOL confirmed vehicles already registered as collector vehicles would still be subject to the insurance requirement going forward but existing plates would not automatically be reissued by the bill. Members also asked whether the 30-year statutory lookback for collector vehicles (vehicles 30 or more years old) could change; DOL and industry said that specific lookback was not addressed in this bill.
The public hearing on House Bill 1194 was closed and the committee proceeded to the next agenda item.
