Session: State Capitol, Room 508 Juneau, AK 99801-1182 Phone: (907) 465-3892 Fax: (907) 465-6595 Interim: 716 W 4th Avenue, Suite 400 Anchorage, AK 99501-2133 Phone: (907) 269-0234 Fax: (907) 269-0238

Sponsor Statement for SB 206
Disabled Parking and Registration Plates

An Act relating to registration plates and parking permits for persons with disabilities and to illegal use of parking spaces for persons with disabilities.

Senate Bill 206 helps insure the availability of priority parking for truly disabled Alaskans and is intended to prevent many of the instances of abuse that currently exist in our state's disabled parking system. Senate Bill 206 improves the issuing process for disabled parking permits and cracks down on individuals convicted of illegally parking in disabled parking areas or convicted of misusing disabled parking permits.

To provide better access to disabled parking spaces for the truly disabled, the State of Washington toughened its laws to combat widespread abuse of disabled parking placards. Other states, fed up with abuse and fraud in their system, have also tightened up their disabled parking laws. A recent Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles' task force recommended the need to reform and strengthen Alaska's disabled parking laws. Senate Bill 206 is consistent with the recommendations of the DMV task force.

It is often difficult to identify whether or not individuals who have parked an automobile in a disabled parking space are disabled or not. Senate Bill 206 requires a person with a permanent disability to obtain a photographic identification card from the Division of Motor Vehicles to utilize handicap parking spaces. The issuance of photo identification cards would assist enforcement officials in identifying those individuals who are authorized to park in disabled parking spaces and those who are not.

Under current law, anybody may park in a disabled parking space as long as their vehicle has a disabled placard or license plate. SB 206 clearly defines who may park in a parking place reserved for disabled individuals. A new provision is added specifying that in order to park in disabled parking areas, the person issued a disabled permit must be occupying or operating the vehicle; or the person operating the vehicle is doing so for the purpose of transporting a disabled person.

SB 206 increases the penalties for illegally parking in a disable parking space and for misusing a disabled permit to park in a disabled parking space. Under existing law, violators are fined $100 if they are convicted of either of these offenses. Under SB 206 individuals convicted of illegally parking in a disabled parking space would be fined $125 and accessed two points from their driver's license. Individuals convicted of misusing a disabled permit would be fined $250, accessed four points from their driver's license and be required to perform eight hours of community service.

DD/sew

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