Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
Pursuant to the authority granted by Ark. Code Ann. §
27-15-307, the
Director of the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration does hereby
promulgate the following rule governing the issuance and display of license
plates and certificates for persons with disabilities:
A.
PURPOSE AND SCOPE.
1. Ark. Code Ann. §
27-15-307 requires
the Office of Motor Vehicle of the Arkansas Department of Finance and
Administration to promulgate rules to advise and inform the general public of
the laws related to parking for persons with disabilities and the availability
of special license plates and special certificates.
2. Act 753 of 2007 amends provisions of the
Access to Parking for Persons with Disabilities Act, Ark. Code Ann. §
27-15-301 et
seq., related to the issuance and display of all special motor vehicle license
plates and certificates to be used by persons with disabilities, and this rule
shall provide for the administration of such special license plates and
certificates.
3. This rule is
intended to supplement and interpret, not supersede, the provisions of Act 753
of 2007. To the extent that this rule does not specifically reference or
mention a provision of Act 753 of 2007, that Act will control.
4. This Rule will replace Motor Vehicle
Regulation 1991-8.
B.
DEFINITIONS. As used in this rule, unless the context indicates
otherwise:
1. "Department" means the Arkansas
Department of Finance and Administration.
2. "Director" means the Director of the
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.
3. "Disability" or "Person with a disability"
means any individual who, as determined by a licensed physician:
a. Cannot walk one hundred feet (100')
without stopping to rest;
b. Cannot
walk without the use of, or assistance from, a brace, cane, crutch, another
person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device;
c. Is restricted by lung disease to such an
extent that the person's forced respiratory expiratory volume for one (1)
second, when measured by spirometry, is less than one (1) liter, or the
arterial oxygen tension is less than sixty (60) mm/hg on room air at
rest;
d. Uses portable oxygen; or
e. Has a cardiac condition to the extent that the person's functional
limitations are classified in severity as Class III or Class IV according to
standards set by the American Heart Association.
4. "Motor vehicle" means a self-propelled
vehicle that is classified as:
a. A Class One,
Class Two, or Class Three pleasure vehicle as defined under Ark. Code Ann. §
27-14-601(a)(1);
or
b. A Class One truck as defined
under Ark. Code Ann. §
27-14-601(a)(3)(A).
5. "Office of Driver Services"
means the Office of Driver Services of the Department of Finance and
Administration.
6. "Office of Motor
Vehicle" means the Office of Motor Vehicle of the Department of Finance and
Administration.
7.
a.
"Permanent disability" means a disability that is determined by
a licensed physician to be continuous without the possibility of improvement
and that substantially impacts a person's mobility.
b. "Permanent disability" includes:
(i) A spinal cord injury;
(ii) A genetic ambulatory disorder;
(iii) An amputation;
(iv) Spina bifida;
(v) Multiple sclerosis;
(vi) Chronic heart disease; or
(vii) Any other condition determined by a
licensed physician to permanently and substantially impact the person's
mobility.
8.
"Temporary disability" means a disability that is determined by a licensed
physician to be temporary as opposed to permanent.
C.
PERMANENT SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES
AND CERTIFICATES.
1. The Office of
Motor Vehicle shall, upon proper application, and upon payment of any
applicable fee required by Arkansas law, issue the following to a person with a
disability one (1) special license plate and one permanent special
certificate.
2. An organization
that owns or leases a motor vehicle that is used in the business of
transporting persons with disabilities may apply to the Office of Motor Vehicle
for issuance of one (1) special license plate to be affixed to the vehicle for
each vehicle used in the business, upon proper application and upon payment of
any applicable fee required by Arkansas law.
3.
a.
An owner of a motor vehicle may apply to the Office of Motor
Vehicle for issuance of one (1) special license plate and one (1) special
certificate, to be affixed to his or her vehicle, if the applicant, a dependent
of the applicant, a foster child of the applicant, or any individual who
depends primarily on the applicant for more than sixty percent (60%) of his or
her transportation is disabled under the definition of a person with a
disability.
b. In the case
of an applicant who is a foster parent, the applicant must also keep in the
vehicle documentation from the Arkansas Department of Human Services
establishing his or her status as a foster parent. The applicant must present
this documentation to a police officer upon request of the officer.
4.
a.
When a special certificate issued under this Rule is displayed
on the inside rearview mirror, or the dashboard if the vehicle is of a type
that does not have an inside rearview mirror, of a vehicle described in §
27-15-303 that is
transporting the person to whom the special certificate was issued, the owner
or operator of the motor vehicle shall be entitled to the same parking
privileges as the owner or operator of a vehicle bearing a special license
plate provided under this Rule.
b. The special certificate shall be issued
free of charge and shall expire four (4) years from the last day of the month
in which it is issued.
5. The photo identification card requirements
in section (g) of this Rule apply to permanent special license plates and
special certificates issued under this section.
6. The special license plate or certificate
shall, upon the death of the person with a disability, be returned to the
Office of Motor Vehicle within 60 days or upon the expiration of the vehicle
registration, whichever occurs first.
7. When a vehicle to which a special license
plate or certificate has been issued under this Rule is sold or transferred,
the special license plate or certificate shall be immediately returned to the
Office of Motor Vehicle for transfer or disposal.
8. If a person to whom a special certificate
or license plate has been issued moves to another state, the person shall
surrender the special certificate or plate to the Office of Motor Vehicle of
the new state in which the vehicle will be registered. The Office of Motor
Vehicle of the new state shall forward the special certificate or plate to the
Arkansas Office of Motor Vehicle.
D.
TEMPORARY CERTIFICATES.
1. A person with a temporary disability may
apply to the Office of Motor Vehicle for a temporary person-with-a-disability
special certificate, and, upon request, one (1) additional temporary special
certificate.
2. When the temporary
special certificate is displayed on the inside rearview mirror, or the
dashboard if the vehicle is of a type that does not have an inside rearview
mirror, of a vehicle that is transporting the person to whom the temporary
special certificate was issued as provided in this Rule, the owner or operator
of the motor vehicle shall be entitled to the same parking privileges as the
owner or operator of a vehicle bearing a special license plate as described in
this Rule.
3. The temporary special
certificate shall be issued free of charge and shall expire three months from
the last day of the month in which it is issued.
E.
LOST PLATES OR CERTIFICATES.
1. The owner of a motor vehicle who applies
to the Office of Motor Vehicle for a replacement special license plate due to
the loss of the plate shall be issued a replacement plate at the fee of $1.00,
or as otherwise set forth in Ark. Code Ann. §
27-14-602.
2. The owner of a motor vehicle who applies
to the Office of Motor Vehicle for a replacement special certificate due to the
loss of the certificate shall be issued a replacement special certificate at no
charge.
3. The disabled person for
whose benefit a replacement special license plate or special certificate is
issued must obtain a new photo identification card in the manner and at the fee
set forth in section (g) of this Rule.
F.
PHYSICIAN CERTIFICATION.
1. Prior to issuing a special license plate
or certificate to or for the benefit of a disabled person under this Rule, the
Office of Motor Vehicle shall require the submission of a certificate, on a
form to be designed by the Office of Motor Vehicle, signed by a physician
licensed under the laws of Arkansas or another State, substantiating the
disability. The physician certifying the qualifying disability shall provide a
full description of the illness or disability.
2. An owner of a motor vehicle issued a
special license plate or certificate under this section shall submit every four
(4) years to the Office of Motor Vehicle a current physician recertification of
the person with a disability to be transported by the vehicle to continue to
qualify for the special license plate, unless the person with a disability has
a permanent disability as defined in this Rule.
3. The certification requirements of this
Rule do not apply to an organization or agency that is issued a special license
plate as described in section (C)(2) of this Rule.
G.
PHOTO IDENTIFICATION CARD.
1.
a.
Except as otherwise provided in this Rule, for every
application for a special license plate or certificate issued under this Rule,
the Office of Driver Services shall produce a photo identification card
containing a color photograph of the person with a disability who is
either:
i. Applying for the special
license plate or certificate; or
ii. Being transported by the vehicle for
which the special license plate or certificate is issued.
b. The photo identification card issued under
this Rule shall be carried on the person to whom it is issued for verification
of authorization to park in spaces designated for persons with a
disability.
c. The photo
identification card for persons with disabilities provided in this Rule shall
be visually distinct from the standard driver's license and from the standard
identification card issued in lieu of a driver's license as provided in Ark.
Code Ann. §
27-16-805.
d. The photo identification card for persons
with disabilities provided in this Rule shall clearly state that it is for
disability parking purposes only.
2.
a.
The requirements of a photo identification card in this section
shall not apply to an applicant in the business of transporting persons with a
disability as defined in this Rule.
b. A person who is a resident of a facility
that provides long term medical care or personal care is not required to obtain
a photo identification card that displays a photograph of the person with a
disability but instead shall carry on the person documentation from the
administrator of the facility attesting that the person with a disability is a
resident of the facility.
c. This
subsection applies to the following facilities including without limitation:
i. A licensed nursing home;
ii. A licensed residential care facility;
or
iii. A licensed assisted living
facility;
d. The Office
of Motor Vehicle shall provide the form to be used for applications under this
section.
3. The photo
identification card provided under this rule shall only be valid for
identifying those persons authorized to park in spaces designated for use by
persons with disabilities. This identification card shall not be valid for
identification for any other purpose.
4. The applicant for the disability photo
identification card shall not be required to provide the documentation required
to obtain the standard identification card provided in Ark. Code Ann. §
27-16-805,
but the applicant must provide the physician certification required in section
(f) of this Rule.
5.
a.
The photo identification card issued under this Rule shall be
issued upon payment of a transaction fee of five dollars ($5.00) and shall
expire four (4) years from the last day of the month in which it is
issued.
b. The transaction
fee referred to in this section shall apply to the replacement of a lost photo
identification card issued under this Rule.
c. In the event the holder of a photo
identification card issued under this Rule changes his or her name as a result
of marriage or divorce, or by operation of a court order, he or she must apply
to the Office of Motor Vehicle for a new photo identification card, which shall
be issued without the transaction fee referred to in this section.
d. In the event the holder of a photo
identification card issued under this Rule changes his or her address, he or
she must apply to the Office of Motor Vehicle for a new photo identification
card, which shall be issued upon payment of the transaction fee referred to in
this section.
6.
a.
In lieu of the photo identification card issued under this
section, a person who holds a valid driver's license or standard identification
card issued under the laws of this state may choose to have an endorsement on
his or her driver's license or identification card that authorizes parking in
areas designated as parking for a person with a disability.
b. The Office of Driver Services shall not
charge an additional fee for adding the endorsement on a currently issued
driver's license or standard identification card.
c. Any person who applies for and does not
currently have a driver's license or standard identification card and requests
the endorsement shall pay only the fee required under current law for the
issuance of a driver's license or identification card and shall not pay an
additional fee for the endorsement.
7. A disabled person issued a license plate
or certificate under this Rule, or for whose benefit a license plate or
certificate has been issued under this Rule, shall, upon request of any police
officer or any other person authorized to enforce parking laws, ordinances, or
regulations, present to that officer or authorized person the photo
identification card, driver's license with disability endorsement, or other
authorized documentation establishing the person's disability
H.
CHANGE OF
ADDRESS.
1. Every owner of a motor
vehicle to which a special license plate or certificate issued under this Rule
shall report to the Office of Motor Vehicle any change of address from that
listed when the vehicle was registered within ten (10) days of the change in
address.
2. Every disabled person
to whom a photo identification card has been issued must, within ten (10) days
of a change in address, must apply to the Office of Driver Services for a new
photo identification card, which shall be issued at the fee described in
section (g) of this Rule.
I.
REPEAL OF MOTOR VEHICLE REGULATION
1991-8.
Motor Vehicle Regulation 1991-8 is hereby repealed.
J.
EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Rule shall be effective on and after January 1, 2008.
