The Dallas Police Department has backed a Texas House bill that would eliminate temporary paper license plates given to drivers when they purchase a new or used vehicle from a dealer.
House Bill 718 would get rid of the temporary paper license plates by requiring dealers to issue metal plates to customers purchasing a vehicle.
The legislation has the support of the Dallas Police Department, whose public information officials told The Dallas Express that criminals use the temporary tags to commit a plethora of different crimes.
“We can confirm the Dallas Police Department is in support of House Bill 718.”
“Paper license plates can present a danger because suspects produce fictitious paper license plates for several reasons: to sell them for profit to knowing or unknowing individuals, to avoid paying registration costs, or to disguise a vehicle connected to crime such as a robbery, burglary, stolen vehicle, etc.”
The Dallas Police Department isn’t the only North Texas police department supporting the measure.
Officials from Grand Prairie, Irving, Mansfield, White Settlement, and Tarrant County traveled to Austin last week to testify in support of an identical piece of legislation, Senate Bill 2567, that was introduced in the Senate.
Still, potential costs and logistics concern some of the legislation’s detractors.
The Texas Independent Auto Dealers Association (TIADA) expressed concern via its website that the transition to metal plates could have a negative impact on auto dealers, and the association claimed credit for pushing the implementation date back by two years.
“First, TIADA was concerned about dealers having an adequate supply of metal plates in such a short time frame. TIADA worked with other stakeholders to express this concern and in response, the sponsor of the bill moved the effective date of the proposed law to make it effective 2 years from now,” reads a blog on the website.
The Texas Legislative Budget Board also estimated the cost of the program to be $20 million in taxpayer money the first year and a recurring $5 million to maintain annually, as CBS News reported.
SB 2567 was left pending in committee by the Senate on April 26, but HB 718 passed the House on Tuesday. The House bill was sent to the Senate on Wednesday, where it now awaits a hearing.
