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HB629 • 2026

MTR VEHICLE/LICEN PLATES: Creates a license plate for the Krewe of Athena

MTR VEHICLE/LICEN PLATES: Creates a license plate for the Krewe of Athena

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Rodney Lyons
Last action
2026-05-11
Official status
Signed by the Governor - Act 80
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Krewe of Athena License Plate Act

This act creates a special license plate for the Krewe of Athena, which will be issued to Louisiana citizens and fund scholarships.

What This Bill Does

  • Creates a new 'Krewe of Athena' specialty license plate for motor vehicles like cars, trucks, motorcycles, and vans.
  • Requires the Department of Public Safety and Corrections to work with the Krewe of Athena Carnival Club to design the plate.
  • Sets an annual fee of $25 that goes to the Krewe of Athena Carnival Club for scholarships.
  • Allows the department to collect a handling fee of $3.50 per plate to cover administrative costs.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Louisiana citizens who want to apply for the 'Krewe of Athena' license plate.
  • The Krewe of Athena Carnival Club, which will receive funds from the fees collected.

Terms To Know

Special Prestige License Plate
A unique and distinctive license plate for motor vehicles that is not a standard issue plate.
Royalty Fee
An additional annual fee collected by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections to support a specific cause or organization.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The license plates will only be issued if there are at least one thousand applicants.
  • Details about the exact design and color of the plate have not been finalized yet.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

Adopted

Plain English: HFAHB629 4931 1921 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Lyons to Engrossed House Bill No.

  • HFAHB629 4931 1921 FOR OFFICE USE ONLY HOUSE FLOOR AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by Representative Lyons to Engrossed House Bill No.
  • 629 by Representative Lyons 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 2, line 2, after "Club" and before "to" insert a comma "," and "Inc." Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.
Adopted

Plain English: HCAHB629 4931 1639 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB629 4931 1639 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works to Original House Bill No.
  • 629 by Representative Lyons 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 1, line 10, after "A." and before "The" insert "(1)" 3 4 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 5 On page 1, between lines 14 and 15, insert the following: 6 (2) The Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of motor 7 vehicles, shall create this special prestige license plate when the applicable statutory 8 provisions are met and the department's electronic vehicle and registration system 9 is updated to accommodate the creation of the new plates." Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.
Draft

Plain English: HCAHB629 4931 1593 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works to Original House Bill No.

  • HCAHB629 4931 1593 HOUSE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS 2026 Regular Session Amendments proposed by House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works to Original House Bill No.
  • 629 by Representative Lyons 1 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 1 2 On page 1, line 10, after "A." and before "The" insert "(1)" 3 AMENDMENT NO.
  • 2 4 On page 1, between lines 14 and 15, insert the following: 5 (2) The Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of motor 6 vehicles, shall create this special prestige license plate when the applicable statutory 7 provisions are met and the department's electronic vehicle and registration system 8 is updated to accommodate the creation of the new plates." Page 1 of 1 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored are additions.

Bill History

  1. 2026-05-11 H

    Effective date: 08/01/2026.

  2. 2026-05-11 H

    Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 80.

  3. 2026-05-05 H

    Sent to the Governor for executive approval.

  4. 2026-05-05 H

    Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.

  5. 2026-05-05 H

    Received from the Senate without amendments.

  6. 2026-05-04 S

    Signed by the President of the Senate.

  7. 2026-04-29 S

    Rules suspended. Read by title, passed by a vote of 32 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

  8. 2026-04-21 S

    Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.

  9. 2026-04-20 S

    Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.

  10. 2026-04-15 S

    Reported favorably.

  11. 2026-03-24 S

    Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works.

  12. 2026-03-23 S

    Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

  13. 2026-03-18 H

    Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 97, nays 0. The bill, having received two-thirds vote of the elected members, was finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

  14. 2026-03-17 H

    Scheduled for floor debate on 03/18/2026.

  15. 2026-03-16 H

    Read by title, amended, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.

  16. 2026-03-11 H

    Reported with amendments (14-0).

  17. 2026-03-09 H

    Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works.

  18. 2026-02-27 H

    First appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.

  19. 2026-02-27 H

    Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works.

  20. 2026-02-27 H

    Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

MTR VEHICLE/LICEN PLATES: Creates a license plate for the Krewe of Athena

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
ENROLLED
ACT No. 802026 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 629
BY REPRESENTATIVES LYONS, BOYD, BRASS, BRAUD, BROUSSARD,
CHASSION, DICKERSON, DOMANGUE, GREEN, KNOX, LAFLEUR, TERRY
LANDRY, LARVADAIN, MARCELLE, MARTINEZ, MURRAY, SPELL,
TAYLOR, WALTERS, AND WILEY
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 47:463.243, relative to motor vehicle special prestige license plates; to
3 establish the "Krewe of Athena" specialty license plate; to provide for the creation,
4 issuance, design, fees, implementation, distribution, and rule promulgation
5 applicable to such license plate; to provide an effective date; and to provide for
6 related matters.
7 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
8 Section 1. R.S. 47:463.243 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
9 §463.243. Special prestige license plate; "Krewe of Athena"
10 A.(1) The secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections shall
11 establish a special prestige motor vehicle license plate to be known as the "Krewe
12 of Athena" plate, provided there is a minimum of one thousand applicants for such
13 plate. The plate shall be restricted to use on passenger cars, pickup trucks,
14 recreational vehicles, motorcycles, and vans.
15 (2) The Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of motor
16 vehicles, shall create this special prestige license plate when the applicable statutory
17 provisions are met and the department's electronic vehicle and registration system
18 is updated to accommodate the creation of the new plates.
19 B. The secretary shall work in conjunction with the Krewe of Athena
20 Carnival Club, Inc. to select the color and design of the plate, provided it is in
21 compliance with R.S. 47:463(A)(3). The design shall include the words "Krewe of
22 Athena".
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HB NO. 629 ENROLLED
1 C. The special prestige license plate shall be issued, upon application, to any
2 citizen of Louisiana in the same manner as any other motor vehicle license plate.
3 D. The department shall collect an annual royalty fee of twenty-five dollars
4 that shall be disbursed in accordance with Subsection E of this Section. This royalty
5 fee shall be in addition to the standard motor vehicle license tax imposed by Article
6 VII, Section 5 of the Constitution of Louisiana and a handling fee of three dollars
7 and fifty cents for each plate to be retained by the department to offset a portion of
8 administrative costs.
9 E. The annual royalty fee shall be collected by the department and forwarded
10 to the treasurer of the Krewe of Athena Carnival Club, Inc. The monies received
11 from the royalty fees shall be used to provide scholarships for debutantes.
12 F. The secretary shall promulgate and adopt rules and regulations as are
13 necessary to implement the provisions of this Section.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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