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SB1477 • 2026

Special License Plates

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 55, Chapter 4, relative to license plates.

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Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
Massey, Howell
Last action
2026-04-13
Official status
Sponsor(s) Added.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not mention the ability for holders of memorial and military registration plates to submit proof electronically. This claim was removed as it is not supported by the provided official source material.

Special License Plates for Tennessee

This bill creates new specialty license plates and extends deadlines for some existing ones in Tennessee.

What This Bill Does

  • Adds new specialty earmarked license plates for various organizations, parks, and events.
  • Creates a distinctive license plate for recipients of certain military honors.
  • Extends the deadline until July 1, 2027, for several new specialty plates to meet issuance requirements.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who want special license plates for their cars or motorcycles in Tennessee.
  • Organizations that can now apply for a specialty plate.
  • Military personnel receiving certain honors.

Terms To Know

Specialty Earmarked License Plates
License plates designed specifically for organizations, events, or causes and the money from selling them goes to support those groups.
Distinctive License Plate
A special type of license plate given to people who have received certain military honors.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how much money each specialty plate will generate.
  • It is unclear which organizations or individuals will apply for the new plates first.
  • Some deadlines are extended, but it's not clear what happens if they still aren't met by July 1, 2027.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1751

Plain English: The amendment adds several new types of specialty license plates that will raise funds for specific organizations and projects.

  • Adds a new Sycamore Shoals Historic Area specialty plate to support the historic park, local historical projects, and charitable nonprofits in Carter County.
  • Introduces a Coalmont OHV Park specialty plate whose proceeds go towards equipment, trail growth, maintenance, and amenities at the park.
  • Creates a Flatrock Motorsports Park specialty plate with funds allocated for STEM education programs in Tennessee schools.
  • Establishes a Blackman Blaze specialty plate to fund construction and maintenance of a new football field at Blackman High School.
  • The amendment text is extensive, and additional details about other proposed plates (such as Sky City Entrepreneur Center) are truncated in the provided material.
Amendment 2-0 to HB1751

Plain English: The amendment extends the deadline for a new ALS Research specialty license plate to meet its required number of issuances until July 1, 2027.

  • Extends the deadline for the ALS Research specialty license plate to comply with issuance requirements until July 1, 2027.
  • The amendment text does not specify what happens after July 1, 2027 if the minimum issuance requirements are still not met.
Amendment 1-0 to SB1477

Plain English: The amendment adds several new types of special license plates that raise money for specific causes or organizations.

  • Adds a new Sycamore Shoals Historic Area license plate to support the historic park and related projects in Carter County, Tennessee.
  • Introduces a Coalmont OHV Park license plate with funds going towards equipment, trail growth, and maintenance at the park.
  • Creates a Flatrock Motorsports Park license plate whose proceeds will be used for STEM education programs in Tennessee schools.
  • Establishes a Blackman Blaze license plate to fund construction and maintenance of athletic fields at Blackman High School.
  • The amendment text is truncated, so it's unclear if there are additional changes beyond the listed sections.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  2. 2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Concurred, Ayes 33, Nays 0 (Amendment 2 - HA0709)

  3. 2026-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/13/2026

  4. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., as am., Ayes 93, Nays 0, PNV 0

  5. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 2 - HA0709)

  6. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Am. withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - HA0708)

  7. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Subst. for comp. HB.

  8. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  9. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. SB subst.

  10. 2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/6/2026

  11. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/2/2026

  12. 2026-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  13. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Finance, Ways, and Means Committee for 3/31/2026

  14. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  15. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 3/25/2026

  16. 2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee

  17. 2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  18. 2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.

  19. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Transportation Committee for 3/17/2026

  20. 2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Transportation Committee

  21. 2026-03-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  22. 2026-03-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  23. 2026-03-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0613)

  24. 2026-03-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/9/2026

  25. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 8, Nays 0 PNV 0

  26. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Transportation Subcommittee for 3/10/2026

  27. 2026-03-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Transportation Subcommittee to 3/10/2026

  28. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Transportation and Safety Committee calendar for 3/4/2026

  29. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Transportation Subcommittee for 3/3/2026

  30. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Transportation Subcommittee

  31. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Transportation Committee

  32. 2026-01-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.

  33. 2026-01-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  34. 2026-01-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  35. 2026-01-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Transportation and Safety Committee

  36. 2026-01-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  37. 2025-11-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON MARCH 9, 2026, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 1477, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, make the following revisions to present law regarding license plates:

NEW SPECIALTY EARMARKED LICENSE PLATES



Creates a new specialty earmarked plate for the following:
o

Coalmont OHV Park
o

Flatrock Motorsports Park
o

Blackman Blaze
o

International Bluegrass Music Association
o

Sky City Entrepreneur Center
o

Local Journalism Matters
o

Knoxville Ice Bears
o

Quail Forever
o

Adopt a Golden
o

Domestic Violence and Assault Awareness and Prevention
o

Back the Blue
o

Cowboy Up
o

Christian Brothers High School
o

Nashville Bourbon Auction
o

The Bridge House
o

LaunchTN
o

Childhood Cancer Awareness
o

Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary or Service
o

Sons of the American Revolution
o

Blacksmithing
o

Ohio State University
o

Appalachia Service Project
o

POD256
o

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
o

Foodies of TN
o

Tennessee Aviation

CULTURAL LICENSE PLATES



Creates a new, distinctive license plate for recipients of the:
o

Airman's Medal
o

Navy and Marine Corps Medal
o

Soldier's Medal
o

Meritorious Service Medal

EXTENSIONS



Grants an extension until July 1, 2027, for the following new specialty earmarked license plates to meet applicable minimum issuance requirements:

o

Man2Man Prostate Cancer Group
o

Respiratory Care
o

YMCA
o

The Elephant Sanctuary
o

Friends of Warner Parks
o

STAR Riding Therapy
o

Singing for Change
o

Tennessee Environment & Restoration
o

Nashville Humane Society
o

Nashville Sounds
o

Historic Jonesborough
o

Golfer
o

Niswonger Children's Hospital at Johnson City Medical Center
o

Tennessee Ronald McDonald House Charities
o

Slow Down Move Over
o

Northeast State Community College
o

End Overdose
o

Rolling Thunder
o

Order of the Eastern Star
o

Support Our Veterans

MISCELLANEOUS



Authorizes the funds generated from the issuance of the Sycamore Shoals specialty earmarked license plate to also be used to support historical projects within Carter County and support charitable nonprofit organizations based in Carter County whose primary mission is (i) animal protection and welfare; (ii) food banks and food pantries; (iii) fire prevention, protection, and control; (iv) ambulance and emergency medical transport services; and (v) after school and summer daycare.



Requires that the minimum issuance requirements for specialty earmarked license plates for specific fraternities and sororities be calculated in the aggregate and not by specific fraternity or sorority.



Requires the Delta Sigma Theta specialty earmarked plate be designed in consultation with an authorized representative of Delta Sigma Theta and to contain the colors, logo, or other emblem or design distinctive to the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.



Authorizes the funds generated from the issuance of the Delta Sigma Theta specialty earmarked plate be allocated to the Delta Research and Educational Foundation.

ON APRIL 6, 2026, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 1477 FOR HOUSE BILL 1751, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #2, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 1477, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #2 grants an extension until July 1, 2027, for the ALS Research new specialty to meet the applicable minimum issuance requirements.

ON APRIL 13, 2026, THE SENATE CONCURRED IN HOUSE AMENDMENT #2.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HOUSE BILL 1751
By Howell

SENATE BILL 1477
By Massey
SB1477
009699
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 55,
Chapter 4, relative to license plates.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 55-4-251(b), is amended by adding
the following at the end of the subsection:
The department may permit a holder to submit the proof electronically.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.