(a) Owners of motor vehicles, motorcycles, and motor-driven cycles who are residents of Alabama, upon application to the judge of probate or commissioner of licenses complying with the state motor vehicle laws relating to registration and licensing of motor vehicles and payment of the regular license fee for tags or plates as provided by law for private passenger, pleasure motor vehicles, motorcycles, or motor-driven cycles and the payment of an additional annual fee of fifty dollars ($50), shall be issued personalized license tags or plates upon which, in lieu of the numbers prescribed by law, shall be inscribed special letters, figures, numbers, or other marks, emblems, symbols, or badges of distinction or personal prestige or a combination of these as are approved for and assigned to the application by the Department of Revenue.

(b) Except for license tags or plates for motorcycles or motor-driven cycles, the special marks or badges of distinction shall include distinctive tags, assigned by the Department of Revenue for each of those public two-year and four-year colleges and universities and private four-year colleges or universities and Athens State University participating in the distinctive tag program and the Environmental Distinctive Tag Program. The distinctive tags shall be issued, printed, and processed in the same manner as other personalized tags are in this chapter. The fee for the distinctive tags shall be the amount provided in subsection (a). The distinctive tags shall be valid for five years and shall be replaced at the end of the period with conventional tags or other personalized tags. Payment of the required motor vehicle license fees and taxes for the years during which a new vehicle license plate is not issued shall be evidenced as provided for in Section 32-6-63. The board of trustees of the respective four-year colleges and universities shall design, or have designed, the distinctive tag for a four-year college or university subject to approval by the Commissioner of Revenue and in compliance with all pertinent laws and regulations. The president of each two-year college shall be responsible for having the distinctive tag for his or her two-year college designed subject to approval by the Legislative Oversight Committee created pursuant to Section 32-6-67 and to approval by the Commissioner of Revenue and in compliance with all laws and regulations.

(c) The Troy University distinctive tags issued January 1, 1987, through October 31, 1987, shall continue to be valid without payment of the additional fee provided in this section until the expiration date in the year 1992, or until otherwise becoming invalid or expired provided the regular annual license fees continue to be paid each year.

(d) Each college or university desiring a distinctive tag shall pay to the Department of Revenue the sum as the commissioner may require to cover the cost of production of the tags requested by the college or university before production occurs.

(e) Legacy, Inc. shall pay to the Department of Revenue the sum the commissioner may require to cover the costs of production of the personalized environmental distinctive tags before production occurs.