​Sen. Dennis Baxley (R-Lady Lake) and Rep. Allison Tant (D-Tallahassee) succeeded in getting their specialty plate bill through the quagmire of committees and floor amendments, including quashing an amendment that came before the Senate on final vote by Senator Linda Stewart (D-Orlando), to try to add three more plates, Toastmaster, Gopher Tortoise and Orlando United. 
The bill was transmitted to the Governor for approval on 6/28/21 and signed on 6/30/21 and has now been enrolled in law.
The proposed new specialty plates under SB 676 are:
FLORIDA STATE PARKS LICENSE PLATES. “Explore our State Parks” - Florida State Parks Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit Florida corporation. With 10% for promotion and marketing and administration of the foundation - originally sponsored by Rep Allison Tant (D-Tallahassee) and Senator Dennis Baxley (R-Lady Lake)
“SUPPORT HEALTHCARE HEROES” LICENSE PLATES.- Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund within the Department of Health to provide financial support for prehospital medical services pursuant to s. 401.113. There is no provision for marketing and administration.
“PROTECT BISCAYNE BAY” LICENSE PLATES.— The Miami Foundation, Inc., a Florida nonprofit CORPORATION. With 10% for promotion and marketing and administration. Originally filed by Rep Nicholas X Duran (D-Miami), who strangely did not vote on the bill, unless he was absent, and Senator Ileana Garcia (R- Miami
“DISEASE PREVENTION & EARLY DETECTION” LICENSE PLATES.— The Women’s Breast & Heart Initiative, Florida Affiliate, 485 Inc., a Florida nonprofit corporation. With 10% for promotion and marketing. Originally sponsored by Rep Felicia Robinson (D-Miami Gardens) and Senator Lori Berman (D-Boynton Beach.)
“HONOR FLIGHT” LICENSE PLATES.— distributed equally among the Honor Flight Network hubs in this state, each of which is a nonprofit corporation. With 10% for promotion and marketing. Originally filed by Rep Brett Thomas Hage (R-Sumter County) and Senators Danny Burgess (R-Pasco, Polk Hillsborough) and Senator Dennis Baxley R-Lady Lake).

​“PROTECT MARINE WILDLIFE” LICENSE PLATES.— for the Protect Wild Dolphins Alliance, Inc., to fund its conservation, research, and educational programs that focus on the conservation of Florida’s threatened and protected marine wildlife species. With 10% for promotion and marketing and administration. Originally filed by Rep Jim Mooney (R-KeyLargo).
30A.COM/SCENIC WALTON LICENSE PLATES. “Support Scenic Walton” Scenic Walton, Inc., a nonprofit Florida corporation to be used to preserve and enhance the beauty and safety of Walton County With 10% for marketing and administration. 
A special Army of Occupation plate was approved for cold war veterans.

​The bill also includes amendments to the Indian River Lagoon license plate with significant changes to the distribution of funding, with the first $5 million annually going to the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) Council must contain the fish “snook,” which has been used as the Indian River Lagoon Surface Water Improvement and Management logo, suspended over seagrass, and must bear the colors and design approved by the department.
The bill directs the IRL Council to administer projects in Volusia, Brevard, and Indian River Counties from funds derived from the appropriate percentage of license plate revenues, and for the South Florida Water Management District to administer projects in St. Lucie, Martin, and Palm Beach counties.
The bill provides that in Volusia County, project implementation may occur in all estuarine waters extending north to and including the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program’s Indian River Lagoon-Halifax River planning boundary amendments that include the Tomoka Basin and in Palm Beach County, first priority must be given to projects within the Indian River Lagoon, and second priority must be given to projects within adjacent estuarine waters, including the Loxahatchee River and other tributaries to the Indian River Lagoon.

​For the Wildlife Foundation of Florida, ("Deer Tag") the name was updated from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission citizen support organization to the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida, Inc., and promotion of hunting was added to preserving open space and wildlife habitat, promoting conservation, improving wildlife habitat, and establishing open space for the perpetual use of the public. They did not amend the 25% allocation for promotion, marketing and administration.

Governor DeSantis signed the bill into law and the voucher presale for these 7 new plates will commence on October 1, 2021

The Florida State Parks Foundation has partnered with Surfing's Evolution & Preservation Foundation to provide beach wheelchairs at ten of Florida’s most popular beach state parks, funded by sales of the Endless Summer specialty license plate. The wheelchairs are available now in select parks.
The beach wheelchairs can be used in areas with soft sand where conventional wheelchairs would get stuck. They can even be wheeled into shallow waters. Ten coastal parks around the state will each receive one wheelchair.
“Increasing accessibility for all is one of our missions and these new beach wheelchairs will allow people with mobility problems the opportunity to get on the beach with their family and friends. They will help create a new experience for them,” said Florida State Parks Foundation President Gil Ziffer.

According to Spinalcord.com, the Sand Rider Offroad Beach Wheelchair is different in that it can be completely customized in a variety of fun colors and has bigger oversized back wheels. It also is able to go in the water. It’s made by Virginia Beach Products in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and it uses the beach wheelchair wheels from WheelEEZ. The Sand Rider costs approx. $2,300. 

The Endless Eummer specialty license plate 

Surfing’s Evolution & Preservation Foundation, Inc. is a charitable organization founded by surfing legend Ron DiMenna and his wife Lynne, to recognize the importance of the beach and surfing lifestyle in Florida and protect these beaches for future generations to enjoy. In 2020, despite the pandemic, they received  nearly $2 million from sales of the Endless Summer specialty license plate, down from just over $2 million in 2019. So far this year, through May 31, 2021, they have received $1,029,200.00, and it is the the top selling specialty license plate ahead of University of Florida ($869,500.00 through May 31) and Helping Sea Turtles Survive ($833,658.00).

​Their focus is on keeping the beaches safe and healthy, by supporting programs and events of other organizations that support beaches and oceans and promote education on beach safety.
“Surfing's Evolution & Preservation Foundation is excited to partner with the Florida State Parks Foundation to provide beach wheelchairs to ten of its parks. We believe that our beaches should be enjoyed by everyone, and we are so pleased to be able to increase accessibility for people who may not be able to get on the beach without assistance,” said Stacey Kirby, Foundation Administrator. “It is our hope that these Sand Rider beach wheelchairs will be enjoyed by many beach lovers for years to come. To support Surfing’s Evolution & Preservation Foundation, and to learn about our Endless Summer® specialty license plate, please visit: www.preservesurfingbeaches.org.”

State parks receiving the beach wheelchairs are: Big Lagoon State Park, Pensacola; Grayton Beach State Park, Santa Rosa Beach; Fort Clinch State Park, Fernandina Beach; Little Talbot Island State Park, Jacksonville; Anastasia State Park, St. Augustine; Sebastian Inlet State Park, Melbourne Beach; Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, Naples; Gasparilla Island State Park, Boca Grande; Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, Key West and Fort Pierce Inlet State Park, Fort Pierce.
The Florida State Parks Foundation, founded in 1993 as Friends of Florida State Parks and renamed in 2018, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation whose mission is to support and help sustain the Florida Park Service, its 175 award-winning parks and trails, local Friends groups and more than 20,000 park volunteers.
Governor DeSantis just approved a bill that creates a specialty license plate: “Explore our State Parks”, originally sponsored by Rep Allison Tant (D-Tallahassee) and Senator Dennis Baxley (R-Lady Lake).

​“I appreciate the members of the Florida Highway Patrol who have volunteered to represent the state of Florida and answer the call to assist fellow law enforcement agencies along the southern border,” said Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Executive Director Terry L. Rhodes. “I thank Governor DeSantis for his leadership on this issue and his continued support of law enforcement.”
Governor Ron DeSantis announced that state law enforcement officers have deployed to Texas to provide additional support in response to the security crisis at the southern border.
“When the Governors of Texas and Arizona reached out for help, Florida answered the call,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “We are witnessing a catastrophe at the southern border under the Biden Administration. In recent months, we have seen people from the terrorist watch list, known sex offenders and a flood of fentanyl cross over the border. This is a national security crisis, and we must get it under control.”
Resources from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are deploying, including more than 50 staff law enforcement members from FDLE, FHP, and FWC and mission critical equipment. It is anticipated that personnel will be deployed for 16-day shifts. Over 20 county sheriff departments have pledged support to provide staffing resources to cover duties typically filled by the deployed officers.

​President Joe Biden today approved an emergency declaration for the state of Florida, making federal aid available, including equipment and other resources and authorizing FEMA to coordinate disaster relief efforts.
Additionally, a team of engineers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology is being sent to Surfside to determine whether a larger investigation that could impact building codes everywhere is needed.
The federal agency studies building structural failures and recommends changes to building codes, fire response and emergency communications, according to spokeswoman Jennifer Huergo.
The death toll from Thursday's partial collapse of a South Florida residential building has risen to four and the number of unaccounted increased by the dozens. Three bodies were found overnight from Thursday into Friday in the wreckage of Champlain Towers South, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Fire Chief Raide Jadallah said, adding to one found early Thursday.
The number of people unaccounted for is now 159, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told reporters, up from the figure of 99 that officials gave Thursday afternoon.

The only way to create a new Florida specialty license plate is to get a legislative bill sponsor and get a bill passed by the Florida Legislature and then signed by the Governor. Once passed, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, Division of Motorist Services  (FLHSMV) will require the design to be to their specifications and a voucher pre-sale of 3,000 must be completed (4,000 for out-of-state colleges). 
The next legislative session will commence on Tuesday, January 11, 2022. Committee Meetings will commence on Monday, September 20, 2021.

​There are currently 109 specialty license plates, with Blue Angels and Walt Disney World to be added to that number in the next few months. The new law caps the potential number of specialty license plates at 150, and the new law revises the process to discontinue low sellers and restructure the independent college license plates. 12 Independent colleges have opted to participate in a new simple standard template enacted by the law specifically for independent colleges and universities. All of those schools’ registrations act in a combined manner when the state determines its rankings. This includes: Lynn University, Florida Hospital College, St. Thomas University, Southeastern University, Florida College, Palm Beach Atlantic University, Keiser University, Ringling College of Art and Design, Eckerd College, Florida Southern, St. Leo University and Warner Southern University.
American Red Cross, Clearwater Christian College, Donate Organs, Pass it On, Hispanic Achievers and St. John's River specialty license plates have been de-listed for lack of sales in 2015/2016. Support Soccer has been de-listed in 2018 due to the sponsoring charity dissolving. 
The new law requires the Department  to approve the new proposed designs within 60 days of October 1, 2020 and establish a method to issue the specialty plate vouchers within 120 days after the specialty license plate becomes law. The method has now been published. Each proposed specialty license plate has 24 months to complete the voucher pre-sale. The proposed specialty plates will be taken in the order they appear in the statute, provided they have met the pre-sale requirement.

It is expected that on October 1, 2021, when SB 676 becomes law, which is awaiting the Governor's signature (the bill was transmitted to the Governor on 6/28/21 and has 15 days to sign or veto it), 7 more new Florida specialty license plates will be added to the presale program, each having to complete the 3,000 presale requirement within 2 years from the date of commencement of their presale:
Protect Marine Wildlife
Florida State Parks
Honor Flight
Biscayne Bay
Disease Prevention & Early Detection
30A.Com/Scenic Walton
Support Health Care Heroes
FLHSMV already has the programming for the voucher program in place and should launch the presale for this batch by December 1, 2021. 
With 111 existing plates, of the allowable 150 maximum slots available for specialty plates, and the prospect of the Department delisting more plates under the new sales requirements, there should be more than enough room for popular license plates to be added to the list in the coming years.

In 2008, a year when 4 more specialty plates were approved, (Play Tennis, Visit our Lights, In God We Trust and Horse Country) the Florida Legislature imposed a moratorium on the creation of new plates, which was extended during the 2014 Legislative Session to July 1, 2016. This bill also revised the requirements for requesting the approval of a specialty license by replacing the scientific sample survey of 30,000 Florida motor vehicle owners and an application fee of $60,000.00 with a pre-sale voucher, requiring the pre-sale of 1,000 vouchers at $30.00, after legislative approval.
During the moratorium, the Legislature proceeded to create 17 more specialty license plates, 15 of which were able to complete the pre-sell.
The last 4 plates to be created by the legislature under the previous 1,000 presale requirement effective 10/1/2014, were Fallen Law Enforcement Officers, Florida Sheriff's Association, Kaiser University and Moffitt Cancer Center. In 2019, a Blue Angels plate was approved, but the accompanying bill to authorize the fee did not. So, the bill was reintroduced in 2020 and passed and the Blue Angels plate has now completed its presale stage and is awaiting manufacturing.
Since 2015, more than 50 new plates, including a proposed plate for Auburn and Georgia Universities, have had bills filed each legislative session. All failed, until the 2020 legislative session wherein 33 new plates (42 including the Divine 9 black fraternity/sorority plates and the Blue Angels plate) were approved. 

​The NASCAR Foundation has again partnered with the Florida Sports Foundation and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) on a newly redesigned NASCAR specialty license plate. The new plate, mirrored after NASCAR’s latest brand mark, is now available at all tax collector offices and license plate agencies across the state. You can order online here. This is the second plate redesign since it was first enacted by the Florida Legislature in 2007.
Florida, the “Birthplace of NASCAR,” is home to NASCAR’s headquarters, along with three NASCAR Cup Series races annually including the DAYTONA 500 and Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway and the Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“We know how much our NASCAR fans love to show their passion for our sport – and we hope they will love this new NASCAR specialty plate,” stated Nichole Krieger, executive director of The NASCAR Foundation. “Even better – by getting this plate, our fans can know their support impacts the lives of children through our programs.”
The NASCAR Foundation applies the proceeds generated from the Florida plate sales to support its health and wellness initiatives for children across the state of Florida through the Speediatrics Children’s Fund. Through this fund, the Foundation supports two NASCAR-themed Speediatrics pediatric care units in Daytona Beach and Homestead, Fla., that serve approximately 50,000 patients each year and has also provided healthy living programming through its Speediatrics Fun Day Festival, highlighted by the distribution of more than 500 brand new athletic shoes and more than 400 new bicycles and helmets to underserved children in the local community. 

Florida Sports Foundation distributes 50 percent of the annual $25 fee from the NASCAR specialty plate to support The NASCAR Foundation, with remaining funds allocated towards its major and regional grant program, NASCAR, through marketing motorsports-related tourism and Enterprise Florida to attract sporting events that generate out-of-state economic impact for the state of Florida.
“For nearly 30 years, the Florida Sports Foundation has worked with private corporate partners to elevate the sports tourism opportunities in our state by raising funds through the sale of specialty license plates.
We are proud to lead this model public-private partnership and work with the NASCAR team and twelve other professional sports companies in this endeavor,” states Angela Suggs, CEO and President of the Florida Sports Foundation.
To order a NASCAR specialty license plate, please click here or visit a local tax collector or license plate agency.

​About The NASCAR Foundation
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing Inc. (NASCAR) established The NASCAR Foundation in January 2006 to support initiatives that positively affect the lives of children throughout the United States. The 501(c) (3) non-profit entity partners with medical experts and other charitable organizations to fund children’s health care programs. The NASCAR Foundation has cumulatively donated nearly $40 million to reach more than 1.4 million children. For more information on The NASCAR Foundation, visit NASCARfoundation.org. Follow The NASCAR Foundation on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/NASCARFoundation or on Twitter at @NASCAR_FDN.
About Florida Sports Foundation
Florida’s Sports Industry creates more than $57.4 billion in economic impact for the Sunshine State, provides over 580,000 jobs for its citizens, and attracts over 16 million out-of-state visitors each year. All of which deservingly make Florida the “Sports Capital of the World”. The Florida Sports Foundation, Inc. is a 501(C)3 non-profit corporation, serving as the Sports Industry Development Division of Enterprise Florida, Inc.

According to a recently released FLHSMV, Division of Motorist Services bulletin on 5/25/2021 (Technical Advisory RS/TL21-014) – Fleet companies and MV dealers can now receive specialty license plates for their vehicles with permission from the sponsoring organization.
Lauren’s Kids and Blue Angels are eligible for issuance as Motor Vehicle dealer plates. These plates will be ordered and processed through Inventory Control.
As MV dealers or fleet companies get permission to use a Specialty License Plate, future deployments for those Specialty License Plates will follow. The FRIVIS procedure manual has been updated for this process.
Also, FLHSMV has announced that the Bronze Star motor vehicle plates will now be available for ordering at the Tax Collector offices.