How ‘the license plate bill to end license plate bills’ finally passed

The Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles offers a assortment of licence sheet options. (Illustration by Jeremy Hsieh/KTOO)

Right now, nan Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles issues licence plates pinch more than 40 chopped designs. There are plates pinch nan National Rifle Association’s logo, pinkish ribbons for bosom crab awareness, various subject insignias and nan Freemasons’ compass and square. There’s moreover 1 specifically for nan remaining survivors of nan 1941 onslaught connected Pearl Harbor. 

These plates thin to originate pinch typical interests aliases nonprofits. They find a sympathetic lawmaker to draught a specialty licence sheet measure for their cause. Then, that legislator has to tally it done a gauntlet of committee hearings, nationalist hearings and level debates successful nan House and Senate. 

It’s a cumbersome process and, for years, lawmakers crossed nan governmental spectrum person joked astir and criticized that they person to woody pinch nan specialty licence plates. It’s a discarded of clip and resources, they said. But, ironically, they were besides unwilling to springiness up nan power.

Some tried, but each grounded to walk a rule to delegate nan work to nan Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles – that is, until this year.

Introducing ‘the licence sheet measure to extremity licence sheet bills’

Sen. Kelly Merrick, R-Eagle River, walks toward nan House enclosure successful nan Alaska State Capitol connected Jan. 30, 2024. (Eric Stone/Alaska Public Media)

Republican Sen. Kelly Merrick of Eagle River is nan latest lawmaker to effort to fto nan DMV grip specialty licence sheet requests without nan Legislature’s engagement done her Senate Bill 95. 

“Also known arsenic nan licence sheet measure to extremity licence sheet bills,” she told nan Senate State Affairs Committee astatine nan bill’s first proceeding successful April of 2023. “It saves money by passing nan costs of processing and issuing plates connected to nan organization, alternatively than spending authorities dollars.”

And, she said, it wouldn’t impact existing specialty plates. 

“Chair, nan Legislature has galore important issues to attraction our attraction on,” she said. “While nan organizations that travel to america requesting specialty plates are worthwhile, licence sheet authorities takes up precious time.”

Over nan adjacent 13 months, nan measure coiled its measurement done nan Senate and nan House, picking up riders on nan way. 

“This was primitively nan licence sheet measure to extremity licence sheet bills,” she told nan House State Affairs Committee this past March. “But aft a level amendment, it is now nan licence sheet measure to extremity licence sheet bills isolated from for 1 licence plate.”

In different words, legislators started to usage nan measure to extremity specialty licence sheet bills to create much specialty licence plates. 

Sen. James Kaufman, an Anchorage Republican, sewage 1 successful to grant fallen bid officers. And he, himself, had his own type of Merrick’s measure that grounded a fewer years ago. 

Then successful nan House, Eagle River Republican Rep. Jamie Allard got specialty plates added for nan United States Space Force, women veterans and retired women veterans.

By May, nan legislative convention was astir complete and Merrick wasn’t thrilled. 

With indignation, she told nan House Finance Committee, “After a House State Affairs amendment, it is nan licence sheet measure to extremity licence sheet bills isolated from for 1 much licence plate, and different 1 and different 1 and different one. … The clip has travel to extremity nan madness and walk SB 95.”

Why inconsequential bills persist 

Sen. Scott Kawasaki, a Democrat from Fairbanks, vowed backmost successful 2016 to effort to extremity licence sheet bills each clip they travel up.

Sen. Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks, addresses reporters during a Alaska Senate Majority property readiness connected Feb. 21, 2023. Kawasaki vowed successful 2016 to effort to extremity nan perennial licence sheet bills arsenic they travel up. Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, acold left, besides tried pinch a measure he introduced successful 2011. (Courtesy Alaska Senate Majority)

“And each year, it conscionable kept getting much and much frustrating that we would beryllium debating a measure connected a licence sheet alternatively than focusing connected the large picture, nan billions of dollars successful wide money gross that are declining or, you know, tons of different things that request our attraction a batch more,” he said this week. 

Kawasaki, by nan way, has a specialty licence sheet connected his ain car, 1 of 60 specifically for authorities legislators. They’re numbered according to seniority. He has a Senate sheet pinch nan number five. 

He thinks that bills for illustration Merrick’s person historically grounded because lawmakers like having immoderate inconsequential, easy-to-pass bills, particularly erstwhile they aren’t successful nan mostly caucus.

“I was successful nan number for 10 years successful nan House,” Kawasaki said. “It was difficult to walk authorities pinch my ain sanction connected it. And truthful these benignant of lesser bills – naming a day, naming a licence sheet – benignant of became thing that number members could reasonably easy pass.”

So what yet changed? 

Merrick’s measure yet did walk this session. The ballot connected nan last type was 39-1 successful nan House. The Senate unanimously concurred pinch nan House changes. 

Kawasaki thinks nan unusually large people of caller legislators who took agency successful 2023 shook things up. And, he thinks nan very last, uncontroversial point having to do pinch commercialized drivers licenses Frankensteined onto Merrick’s measure helped. 

That addition removes a obstruction for refugees to get a commercialized driver’s licence successful Alaska, related to a measure passed successful 2023. The connection came from a abstracted measure nan politician requested that didn’t pass. 

“So location were a batch of changes that were made successful nan House broadside that really conscionable pushed it complete nan edge,” Kawasaki said. 

It’s a small spot of advancement and should springiness lawmakers much clip to woody pinch nan state’s bigger issues, he said. 
The bipartisan bill to extremity licence sheet bills – and do immoderate different worldly – is awaiting Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature. Barring a veto, it will go rule astatine nan extremity of nan month.