Choose Life Specialty Plate Law
Florida's Pro-Adoption Specialty Plate!
The Choose Life license plate is the first official license plate in the world to encourage women to consider adoption as a solution for their unplanned/unwanted pregnancies.
320.08058 (29) CHOOSE LIFE LICENSE PLATES
(a) The department shall develop a Choose Life license plate as provided in this section. The word “Florida” must appear at the bottom of the plate, and the words “Choose Life” must appear at the top of the plate.
(b) The annual use fees shall be distributed annually to Choose Life, Inc., along with a report that specifies the ratio that the annual use fees collected by each county bear to the total fees collected for the plates within the state. Choose Life, Inc., shall distribute each county’s share of the funds to nongovernmental, not-for-profit agencies within each Florida county which assist pregnant women who are making an adoption plan for their children. Funds may not be distributed to any agency that is involved or associated with abortion activities, including counseling for or referrals to abortion clinics, providing medical abortion-related procedures, or proabortion advertising, and funds may not be distributed to any agency that charges women for services received.
1. Agencies that receive the funds must use the funds to provide for the material needs of pregnant women who are making an adoption plan for their children, including, but not limited to, clothing, housing, medical care, food, utilities, and transportation. Such funds may also be expended on birth mothers for 60 days after delivery and on infants awaiting placement with adoptive parents.
2. Funds may also be used for adoption-related counseling, training, or advertising but may not be used for administrative expenses, legal expenses, or capital expenditures. However, a maximum of 15 percent of the total funds received annually may be used by Choose Life, Inc., for the administration and promotion of the Choose Life license plate program.
3. If no qualified agency applies to receive funds in a county in any year, that county’s Choose Life funds shall be distributed pro rata to any qualified agencies that apply and maintain a place of business within a 100-mile radius of the county seat of such county. If no qualified agencies apply, the funds shall be held by Choose Life, Inc., until a qualified agency under this section applies for the funds.
4. Each agency that receives such funds must submit an annual attestation to Choose Life, Inc. Any unused funds that exceed 10 percent of the funds received by an agency each year must be returned to Choose Life, Inc., which shall distribute the funds to other qualified agencies within the State of Florida.
(c) By October 1, 2011, the department and each county shall transfer all of its Choose Life license plate funds to Choose Life, Inc.
Page updated 2-9-2012