Could this bill be the end of registration stickers on Utah license plates?

SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah lawmaker wants to create more options for vehicle registration.

Rep. Katy Hall, R-Salt Lake City, is sponsoring a bill to create a month-to-month car registration option. The goal is to increase affordability and allow Utahns to get the most of their money. 

“Let’s say you sell your car two months after you register it, then that next 10 months, the state just keeps that money, you don’t get a refund,” Hall said. “Then the next person who registers it gives them a full year again.”

She said the bill started as a refund idea where Utahns would get money back for the months they didn’t drive the car. 

“We came up with this solution of doing a month-to-month… Kind of like a Netflix subscription, where it automatically renews,” Hall said. 

The month-to-month plan would only be optional for highway vehicles. Recreational and off-road vehicles like boats and some motor homes would not have the option.

Hall said if this policy passes and finds success, they will consider expanding it to include recreational vehicles. 

Opting into the monthly plan would not change the overall fee, it would just spread it out. The proposed annual fee would be split into 12 equal payments.

“This helps low-income families, it can help starving college students,” Hall said. “It also helps our elderly who may be feeling the heat of property tax payments.”

Bye-bye registration stickers in Utah

There is one major change that comes along with this bill. The state would get rid of registration stickers on all highway license plates.

The month and year stickers on the corners would be removed completely.

To find out if a car is up to date, a police officer would have to check their internal system. It would eliminate lots of routine traffic stops from expired tags.

One thing the bill wouldn’t change is the emissions process. The state would still require emissions tests every two years.

More on Utah’s Capitol Hill:

• Plan to run for office as a write-in candidate in Utah? One lawmaker says not so fast
• Bill to block public access to NIL contracts advances in Utah Legislature