Distinctive motor vehicle license tag; authorize issuance to supporters of United States Coast Guard Auxiliary.

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To: Ways and Means
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Carpenter

HOUSE BILL NO. 1227

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 27-19-56.549, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1
1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE ISSUANCE OF DISTINCTIVE MOTOR VEHICLE 2
LICENSE TAGS TO SUPPORTERS OF THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD 3
AUXILIARY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. Section 27-19-56.549, Mississippi Code of 1972, 6
is amended as follows: 7
27-19-56.549. (1) Any owner of a motor vehicle who is a 8
resident of this state, upon payment of the road and bridge 9
privilege taxes, ad valorem taxes and registration fees as 10
prescribed by law for private carriers of passengers, pickup 11
trucks and other noncommercial motor vehicles, and upon payment of 12
an additional fee in the amount provided in subsection (4) of this 13
section, shall be issued a distinctive license tag for any motor 14
vehicle registered in his name identifying such person as a 15
supporter of any one (1) of the following: 16
(a) Mississippi Association of Nurse Practitioners; 17
(b) Navy Seabee Foundation; 18
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(c) Saint Stanislaus College in Bay Saint Louis, 19
Mississippi; 20
(d) Vancleave Live Oak Choctaw; 21
(e) Morton High School; 22
(f) Forest Municipal School District; 23
(g) Lake High School; 24
(h) Scott Central Attendance Center; 25
(i) Sebastopol Attendance Center; 26
(j) East Rankin Academy; 27
(k) Houston High School; 28
(l) Magnolia Heights School; 29
(m) Regents School of Oxford; 30
(n) The Garden Clubs of Mississippi, Inc.; 31
(o) Baptist Health Foundation, Inc.; 32
(p) Greene County Wildcats; 33
(q) Mississippi Disc Golf; 34
(r) Mississippi Road Builders Association; 35
(s) Clinton Public School District; 36
(t) Magnolia Speech School; 37
(u) Coahoma County Jr./Sr. High School; 38
(v) Clinton Community Nature Center; 39
(w) Most Worshipful King Hiram Grand Lodge, A.F. & 40
A.M., State of Mississippi; 41
(x) Electra Grand Chapter Order of the Eastern Star, 42
A.F. & A.M., State of Mississippi; 43
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(y) City of Olive Branch, Mississippi; 44
(z) Methodist Cursillo of Mississippi; 45
(aa) Clarkdale High School in Lauderdale County, 46
Mississippi; 47
(ab) Columbia Academy Cougars; 48
(ac) Mississippi Hunting Dog Association; 49
(ad) O'Keefe Educational Media DBA Disability 50
Connection; 51
(ae) New Orleans Pelicans; 52
(af) Mississippi Economic Council; 53
(ag) Lighthouse Academy for Dyslexia; 54
(ah) The Declaration of Independence Center for the 55
Study of American Freedom at the University of Mississippi; 56
(ai) Mississippi Land Bank; 57
(aj) Louisiana-Mississippi-West Tennessee District of 58
Kiwanis International; 59
(ak) National Guard Association of Mississippi; 60
(al) Mississippi College School of Law; 61
(am) Magnolia Honeybee Education Exchange; 62
(an) United States Coast Guard Auxiliary. 63
(2) The distinctive license tags so issued shall be of such 64
color and design as the department, with the advice of the 65
respective beneficiary organization listed in subsection (1) of 66
this section, may prescribe and shall consist of such letters or 67
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numbers, or both, as may be necessary to distinguish each license 68
tag. 69
(3) Application for the distinctive license tags authorized 70
by this section shall be made to the county tax collector on forms 71
prescribed by the department. The application and the additional 72
fee imposed under subsection (4) of this section, less Two Dollars 73
($2.00) thereof to be retained by the tax collector, shall be 74
remitted to the department on a monthly basis as prescribed by the 75
department. The portion of the additional fee retained by the tax 76
collector shall be deposited into the county general fund. 77
(4) Any person applying for a distinctive license tag under 78
this section shall pay an additional fee in the amount of Thirty 79
Dollars ($30.00) for each distinctive license tag applied for 80
under this section, which shall be in addition to all other taxes 81
and fees. The additional fee paid shall be for a period of time 82
to run concurrently with the vehicle's established license tag 83
year. The additional fee is due and payable at the time the 84
original application is made for a distinctive license tag under 85
this section and thereafter annually at the time of renewal 86
registration as long as the owner retains the distinctive license 87
tag. If the owner does not wish to retain the distinctive license 88
tag, he must surrender it to the local county tax collector. 89
(5) The department shall deposit all fees into the State 90
Treasury on the day collected. At the end of each month, the 91
department shall certify to the State Treasurer the total fees 92
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collected under this section from the issuance of the distinctive 93
license tags issued under this section. The State Treasurer shall 94
distribute such collections as follows: 95
(a) Twenty-four Dollars ($24.00) of each additional fee 96
collected on distinctive license tags issued pursuant to this 97
section shall be distributed to the appropriate beneficiary 98
organization listed in subsection (1) of this section. 99
(b) One Dollar ($1.00) of each additional fee collected 100
on distinctive license tags issued pursuant to this section shall 101
be deposited into the Mississippi Burn Care Fund created pursuant 102
to Section 7-9-70. 103
(c) Two Dollars ($2.00) of each additional fee 104
collected on distinctive license tags issued pursuant to this 105
section shall be deposited to the credit of the State Highway Fund 106
to be expended solely for the repair, maintenance, construction or 107
reconstruction of highways. 108
(d) One Dollar ($1.00) of each additional fee collected 109
on distinctive license tags issued pursuant to this section shall 110
be deposited to the credit of the special fund created in Section 111
27-19-44.2. 112
(6) A regular license tag must be properly displayed as 113
required by law until replaced by a distinctive license tag under 114
this section. The regular license tag must be surrendered to the 115
tax collector upon issuance of the distinctive license tag under 116
this section. The tax collector shall issue up to two (2) license 117
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ST: Distinctive motor vehicle license tag;
authorize issuance to supporters of United
States Coast Guard Auxiliary.
decals for each distinctive license tag issued under this section, 118
which will expire the same month and year as the regular license 119
tag. 120
(7) In the case of loss or theft of a distinctive license 121
tag issued under this section, the owner may make application and 122
affidavit for a replacement distinctive license tag as provided by 123
Section 27-19-37. The fee for a replacement distinctive license 124
tag shall be Ten Dollars ($10.00). The tax collector receiving 125
such application and affidavit shall be entitled to retain and 126
deposit into the county general fund five percent (5%) of the fee 127
for such replacement license tag and the remainder shall be 128
distributed in the same manner as funds from the sale of regular 129
distinctive license tags issued under this section. 130
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 131
and after July 1, 2026. 132