Committee discusses Buffalo River specialty license plate; DFA seeks upfront design deposit

Senator Missy Irvin presented Senate Bill 500 to the Senate Transportation, Technology & Legislative Affairs Committee as a proposal to create a Buffalo River specialty license plate and said the sponsoring conservation group would work with a local artist to create the plate design.

Paul Gehring, representing the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA), told the committee DFA would include an amendment requiring the sponsoring organization to deposit the vendor’s upfront design costs so the department would not bear initial expenses. “Those upfront costs for the design generally range in about the $5,000 range that our vendor for the plates will be requiring,” Gehring said.

Irvin said the Buffalo River Conservation Committee has agreed to provide the deposit and will work with a local artist in Gilbert, Arkansas, to produce artwork that can be digitized for the vendor. Committee discussion also raised a potential partnership with the state’s EAST program — which has Archicad software in its labs — so students could help digitize designs, potentially lowering costs.

Committee members discussed process and timing for the amendment. Members agreed DFA would draft amendment language and the committee could add the amendment at its next meeting (Tuesday at 11 a.m.), with an expectation that the bill could be engrossed and reach the Senate floor the following week if processed quickly. No formal vote on the bill or the amendment was taken during the session.

Next steps: DFA will provide draft amendment language requiring an upfront deposit; the committee scheduled consideration of that amendment for its next meeting.