168.381 MANUFACTURE OF VEHICLE PLATES; APPROPRIATIONS.
    Subdivision 1. Correctional facilities; other manufacturers. (a) Plates required by this
chapter may be manufactured by the Minnesota Correctional Facility-St. Cloud, the Minnesota
Correctional Facility-Stillwater, or other facility established by law for the confinement of persons
convicted of felony, upon order from the commissioner. The order must state the quality of
material desired in the plates, the plate specifications, and the amount or number desired.
(b) Should the commissioner of corrections decide not to supply the required quantity of
plates, or discontinue the manufacture of plates, the commissioner of public safety is authorized
to seek other suppliers on a competitive basis.
    Subd. 2. Laboratory testing; costs. (a) Materials purchased to be used in the manufacture
of plates must be tested as to conformance with specifications established by the commissioner
in a privately operated laboratory service to be designated by the commissioner. The cost of the
laboratory must be included in the cost of materials purchased.
(b) The cost of delivery of plates to the commissioner at places designated by the
commissioner must be included in the expenses incurred in their manufacture.
    Subd. 3. Specifications. The commissioner shall establish new or revised specifications for
the material and equipment used in the manufacture of plates ordered for manufacture after August
1, 1975, and may from time to time revise the specifications; provided that the specifications
conform to the requirements of section 168.12. In establishing new or revised specifications, the
commissioner shall consult with and give consideration to the advice and recommendations of
representatives of the Minnesota State Patrol, local police officers' associations, and the county
sheriffs' association.
    Subd. 4. Appropriations. (a) Money appropriated to the Department of Public Safety to
procure the plates for any fiscal year or years is available for allotment, encumbrance, and
expenditure from and after the date of the enactment of the appropriation. Materials and
equipment used in the manufacture of plates are subject only to the approval of the commissioner.
(b) This section contemplates that money to be appropriated to the Department of Public
Safety to carry out the terms and provisions of this section will be appropriated by the legislature
from the highway user tax distribution fund.
(c) A sum sufficient is appropriated annually from the vehicle services operating account
in the special revenue fund to the commissioner to pay the costs of purchasing, delivering, and
mailing plates, registration stickers, and registration notices.
History: 1957 c 412 s 1,2; 1965 c 158 s 1; 1969 c 1129 art 1 s 15; 1973 c 140 s 1; 1975 c 10
s 1; 1979 c 102 s 13; 1981 c 37 s 2; 1986 c 444; 1Sp2001 c 8 art 2 s 37; 1Sp2005 c 6 art 2 s 29