SB 23-145

Senate Bill 23-145, also known as the "Stegosaurus State Fossil License Plate" bill, allows Colorado residents to get a special license plate featuring the stegosaurus fossil. To qualify for this plate, drivers must donate money to a nonprofit organization that focuses on educating people about dinosaurs and protecting dinosaur fossils in Colorado. The bill requires an additional $25 fee from applicants, with part of it going towards road maintenance and the rest supporting licensing services. This bill was signed into law by the governor and will take effect starting August 7, 2023.

Official Summary

The act creates the stegosaurus state fossil license plate for motor vehicles. The department of revenue (department) must designate a nonprofit organization to qualify applicants for issuance of the license plate. The organization must provide educational services about the science and history of dinosaurs and support the stewardship and preservation of dinosaur fossils, tracks, and paleontology sites in Colorado. An applicant qualifies for issuance of the license plate if the applicant makes a donation to the organization and pays all required taxes and fees. In addition to the standard motor vehicle fees, the applicant must pay 2 one-time fees of $25 for issuance of the license plate. One fee is credited to the highway users tax fund and the other fee is credited to the licensing services cash fund. To implement this act, $39,151 is appropriated to the department for use by the division of motor vehicles. This appropriation consists of $5,492 from the Colorado DRIVES vehicle services account in the highway users tax fund and $33,659 from the license plate cash fund. APPROVED by Governor May 22, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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