OLYMPIA…State Sen. Don Benton, R-Vancouver, has introduced a bill to create a new license plate to honor the men and women who serve in combat.

“American troops will always be around the world to protect our freedom,” Benton said. “Even without a conflict, these men and woman can find themselves in harm’s way. We need more than car stickers to thank them; we need a more permanent show of patriotism.”

Benton’s measure calls for a design that includes a soldier and a child and exempts the plate from the temporary moratorium on new plates until June 1, 2007. The measure also exempts the plate from review by the special license plate review board.

“I just want to make this plate available as soon as possible,” Benton said. “We’ve all seen the families of soldiers standing on I-5 overpasses for a long time now. We honk and we wave to show our support. These license plates will mean a great deal to military families when they see them on cars and can put them on their own cars.”

After costs are recovered, all proceeds from the sale of the license plates will be deposited into a special “Support Our Troops” account and may be used for:

• assisting the spouses and families of soldiers killed in military action;
• providing training or assistance to soldiers injured in military action; and
• purposes consistent with the articles of incorporation for Support Our Troops, Inc., a nonprofit organization.

Benton’s bill, Senate Bill 6830, has been referred to the Senate Transportation Committee of which Benton is a member.

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For more information contact Penny Drost
at (360) 786-7522
or penny.drost@leg.wa.gov