THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 14, 1994 TAG: 9407120121
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: E8 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Short : 48 lines
Laws passed during the 1994 General Assembly that affect Virginia motorists became effective July 1:
New license plates: The Navy Cross, Distinguished Service Cross, Air Force Cross and the tobacco heritage (featuring a tobacco leaf) license plates will be available for a $10 annual fee in addition to registration fees. Also, a plate featuring the official insect of Virginia, the Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, will be issued after 150 applications are received. The plate also carries an additional annual fee of $10.
The Department of Motor Vehicles will issue a series of three license plates that support children's programs. The series includes a child's handprint plate, a heart plate and a blue five-point star plate. Each of these plates is available for a $25 annual fee in addition to registration fees. After 1,000 plates have been sold, $15 of the fee for each additional plate sold will be transferred into the Children's Program Fund to be divided equally between the Family and Children's Trust Fund and the Virginia Department of Health to support Safe Kids.
Disabled Parking: DMV will issue three placards to disabled motorists: a blue placard to indicate a vehicle transports someone with a permanent disability that limits their ability to walk, a red placard to indicate an individual has a physical disability that limits their mobility for up to six months and a green placard for organizations transporting disabled individuals.
Where parking time is restricted, disabled individuals can park for up to four hours. They will continue to be exempt from paying at metered parking spaces.
Holders of disabled veteran plates no longer will be allowed disabled parking privileges if the international symbol of access is not part of their plate.
Drinking and Driving: Individuals now will be considered to be driving under the influence if their blood alcohol content is 0.08 percent or higher. If their driving is impaired, they can be convicted of driving under the influence. Drivers younger than 21 driving with a blood alcohol content of at least 0.02 percent, but less than 0.08 percent, will be punished with a fine of up to $500 and a six-month suspension of their driver's license.
For more information, call any DMV office. by CNB