§ 31-3-85. Special plate for the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation. (a) The administrator of the division of motor vehicles is empowered to make available special motor vehicle registration plates for passenger vehicles based upon the not-for-profit entity, the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, for any motor vehicle eligible for registration as an automobile, commercial vehicle having a gross weight of ten thousand pounds (10,000 lbs.) or less, or combination vehicle.

(b) The special plate shall be displayed upon the same registration number assigned to the vehicle for which it was issued and shall be used in place of and in the same manner as the registration plates issued to the vehicle. The original registration plates for the vehicle shall be removed from the vehicle and the registration certificate for the plates shall be carried in the vehicle, in accordance with § 31-3-9. The registration certificate shall be in effect for the special plate. The administrator shall be authorized to retain newly issued plate numbers, at his or her discretion, for the purpose of conducting auctions of the right to use and display those numbers under such terms and conditions as the administrator may permit.

Auction proceeds shall be apportioned and distributed for charitable purposes, in the discretion of the administrator, in accordance with such agreements as may be entered into with those entities holding ownership rights to the logos. The administrator is hereby authorized to enter into agreements for the use of logos on Rhode Island registration plates.

(c) The New England Patriots Charitable Foundation motor vehicle plates shall be the same size as regular motor vehicle plates and shall be designed in conjunction with the division of motor vehicles, with design approval by the Rhode Island State Police.

(d) New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plates shall be subject to a minimum pre-paid order of at least nine hundred (900) plates with respect to each plate type authorized pursuant to this section. New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plates shall not be issued unless the minimum order requirements are met. The initial order will be handled by the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation and shall not be submitted to the division of motor vehicles for the production until the minimum order has been met and the proper paperwork submitted to the division. Subsequent New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plate orders will be handled by the division of motor vehicles.

(e) The administrator of motor vehicles shall develop application forms, prepayment procedures, and any other procedures deemed necessary to carry out the purposes of this section.

(f) In addition to the regular prescribed motor vehicle registration fee, New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plates shall be subject to a forty-dollar ($40.00) issuance surcharge.

(g) The forty-dollar ($40.00) issuance surcharge shall be allocated as follows: twenty dollars ($20.00) shall be allocated to the general fund and the remaining twenty dollars ($20.00) shall be distributed annually to the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation in furtherance of its mission of assisting the youth and families of New England through donations that foster cultural diversity, education, family, and health.

(h) A ten-dollar ($10.00) surcharge for subsequent registration renewals shall be allocated to the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation.

(i) In consideration of the receipt of funds from the registration of New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plates, the foundation must use any Rhode Island sourced funds in and for the benefit of Rhode Island-based charitable organizations.

(j) The New England Patriots Charitable Foundation will be required to submit an annual accounting report before such monies are distributed.

(k) There shall be no refunds for early cancellation of New England Patriots Charitable Foundation plates.

History of Section. (P.L. 2009, ch. 191, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 193, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 224, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 249, § 1; P.L. 2018, ch. 346, § 21.)