House backs plan for digital license plates

The House gave preliminary approval Tuesday to a bill that sets up Texas to be the latest state to allow digital car license plates.

House Bill 1711, filed by Rep. Chris Paddie, R-Marshall, would let people have the option for a digital plate on the rear of cars.

"This is about giving consumers more opportunity and flexibility, so it adds some features that I think will not only be beneficial to consumers but would be beneficial to law enforcement as well," Paddie said.

Digital license plates, currently produced only by the San Francisco Bay Area-based startup Reviver, are customizable plates that include features for parking permits, toll collection and GPS tracking. Law enforcement can remotely indicate on a digital plate that the vehicle is reported stolen.

Paddie worked with state law enforcement officials to alleviate fears regarding hacking, fraudulent activity and whether they can effectively be read, he said. Now, he has a letter from several police departments, including the Dallas and Houston police departments, stating the groups are neutral on the bill. He added that the Sheriffs' Association of Texas is also neutral on the bill, but Collin County Sheriff Jim Skinner, who leads the association's legislative committee, said the group opposes it on the basis that license plate readers cannot read digital license plates, according to his spokesman.

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The House approved an amendment Tuesday that would require the Department of Public Safety to approve individual digital license plate producers.

"It adds an additional layer of comfort for law enforcement to know that DPS is going to have a say in whether or not the provider is acceptable," Paddie said.

The customizable plates also allow for advertisements to appear on a portion of the license plate, a feature that Paddie said created confusion. He said cars would not become rolling billboards.

"I don't think that's the intent, and we had some discussions to try to clarify with folks that that's not really what we're talking about here," Paddie said.

Paddie said he did not know whether car owners or digital plate producers would receive revenue from advertisements.

Digital plates are currently on cars in California and Arizona and will soon be in Michigan.

The Georgia and Illinois legislatures currently are considering bills like Paddie’s, and Florida and Washington have approved upcoming studies.

"Reviver will work with TxDOT on what the rollout of the DLP’s in TX will look like if our bill is passed," Angela Jacobson, a Reviver spokeswoman, said in a written statement to the American-Statesman.

The bill received no opposition in the House, passing its first vote unanimously. The final House vote is scheduled for Wednesday.

Currently, pushback against the bill comes from metal license plate producers, Paddie said.

"It's just another example of innovation, he said. "Obviously, we recognize that it challenges the status quo a bit, as often innovation does."

Although the bill previously removed front plates if someone opted for a digital rear plate, the current wording leaves the need for front metal license plates.

Digital license plates are costly. The base model by Reviver in California and Arizona costs $499 plus a $3.99 monthly subscription.

"This will never fully replace traditional license plates," Paddie said.

Correction: This story has been updated to correctly reflect the Sheriffs' Association of Texas' position on HB 1711.