Houston Chronicle reports, a Texas House bill (HB 718) “inching its way through the legislative process” aims to stop the flood of fraudulent paper license tags originating in Texas that allow scofflaws to avoid paying tolls and other transportation fees, and help other criminals avoid apprehension. It calls for supplying legitimate car dealers with permanent metal plates that they would issue at the time of sale. “Those dealer-issued plates then would correspond with the vehicles from the start, as their registrations are processed. . . . Such a change could help police better track and trace plates to vehicles, and reduce the use of paper tags.” Law enforcement officers turned out in force to support the bill at a House Transportation Committee hearing last week. Although the Chronicle states a committee vote is expected this week, the measure is not listed on the agenda of the panel’s next (April 5) meeting. An identical companion bill (SB 2567) has not yet received a hearing.
