House Bill No. 6338
               House Bill No. 6338

              PUBLIC ACT NO. 97-221


AN ACT CONCERNING  THE PRESERVATION OF LIGHTHOUSES
AND THE RENOVATION  OF  HISTORICAL  STRUCTURES  ON
STATE LAND.


    Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and House of
Representatives in General Assembly convened:
    Section 1. (NEW)  (a)  There  is  created  the
Connecticut Lighthouse Preservation  account which
shall be a  separate,  nonlapsing  account  of the
Long Island Sound account. The account may receive
any funds required by law to be deposited into the
account.   The   Commissioner   of   Environmental
Protection may receive private donations and funds
from the federal  government  for  deposit  in the
account. Any balance  remaining  in the account at
the  end of  any  fiscal  year  shall  be  carried
forward in the  account  for  the fiscal year next
succeeding.
    (b)  All moneys deposited in the account shall
be  used  by  the  Commissioner  of  Environmental
Protection  for  (1)  the  provision  of grants or
loans  to  private,  nonprofit  entities   or   to
municipalities  for  the preservation, maintenance
or  restoration  of  publicly-accessible  historic
lighthouses  on  Long  Island Sound including, but
not   limited   to,   protection   of   lighthouse
structures  and  associated  properties from tidal
erosion,   and   enhancing   public   access    to
lighthouses,  (2)  the  cost of administering this
section provided nothing  in  this  section  shall
prohibit  the  commissioner  from  using  existing
application forms in the Long Island Sound license
plate   program   until   such   forms  have  been
distributed   and   (3)   reimbursement   of   the
Department  of  Motor  Vehicles  for  the  cost of
soliciting   and   transferring   the   lighthouse
preservation  donation  authorized  under  section
14-21e of the  general  statutes,  as  amended  by
section    2    of   this   act,   including   any
administrative expenses.
    (c)    The   Commissioner   of   Environmental
Protection may provide for  the  reproduction  and
marketing    of   the   image   of   Connecticut's
publicly-accessible historic lighthouses  for  use
on   clothing,  recreational  equipment,  posters,
mementoes or other products or programs deemed  by
the  commissioner  to  be  suitable  as a means of
supporting the Connecticut Lighthouse Preservation
account.  Any  funds  received by the commissioner
from such marketing shall  be  deposited  in  said
account.
    Sec.  2.  Subsection  (b) of section 14-21e of
the general statutes is repealed and the following
is substituted in lieu thereof:
    (b)  The  Commissioner of Motor Vehicles shall
establish, by regulations  adopted  in  accordance
with  chapter  54,  a  fee  to be charged for Long
Island  Sound  commemorative  number   plates   in
addition to the regular fee or fees prescribed for
the registration of a motor vehicle. The fee shall
be for such number plates with letters and numbers
selected by the Commissioner  of  Motor  Vehicles.
The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles may establish a
higher fee  for:  (1)  Such  number  plates  which
contain  letters in place of numbers as authorized
by section 14-49, in addition to the fee  or  fees
prescribed  for  plates issued under said section;
and (2) such number plates which  are  low  number
plates,  in  accordance  with  section  14-160, in
addition to the fee or fees prescribed for  plates
issued  under  said  section.  THE COMMISSIONER OF
MOTOR VEHICLES  SHALL  ESTABLISH,  BY  REGULATIONS
ADOPTED  IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH  THE  PROVISIONS  OF
CHAPTER 54,  AN  ADDITIONAL  VOLUNTARY  LIGHTHOUSE
PRESERVATION  DONATION WHICH SHALL BE DEPOSITED IN
THE CONNECTICUT  LIGHTHOUSE  PRESERVATION  ACCOUNT
ESTABLISHED  UNDER SECTION 1 OF THIS ACT. All fees
established and collected pursuant to this section
shall be deposited in the Long Island Sound [Fund]
ACCOUNT established pursuant to section 22a-27k.
    Sec.   3.   (NEW)    The    Commissioner    of
Environmental  Protection  may   accept   and  use
private donations for the renovation of historical
structures on state land.

Approved June 24, 1997