341.269 Historic military vehicles; registration, plates, use.

(1) In this section:

(a) “Historic military vehicle" means a vehicle, including a trailer but excluding a tracked vehicle, that was manufactured for use in any country's military forces and is maintained to accurately represent its military design and markings, regardless of the vehicle's size or weight.

(b) “Parts vehicle" means a vehicle generally in nonoperable condition that is owned to furnish parts which will enable a historic military vehicle owner to restore, preserve, and maintain a historic military vehicle.

(2)

(a) Any resident of this state who is the owner of a historic military vehicle that is at least 25 years old at the time of making application for registration and has been imported into the United States from another country, or that is any age and has not been imported into the United States, may upon application register the vehicle under this section as a historic military vehicle upon payment of the fees specified in par. (b). The applicant has the burden of providing evidence satisfactory to the department that the vehicle may be registered under this section, including, if applicable, providing documentation demonstrating that a historic military vehicle which is less than 25 years old was manufactured for U.S. military forces and was never imported.

(b)

1. Except as provided in subd. 3., the fee to register a vehicle under this section is $5. Upon application, the owner may reregister the vehicle under this section without the payment of any additional fee.

2. Except as provided in subd. 3., in addition to the fee under subd. 1., an applicant for initial registration under this section shall pay a one-time processing fee of $25 for the initial costs of production of the special plates under par. (c).

3. The department may not collect any fee under subd. 1. or 2. if, at the time of application for registration under this section, the vehicle is currently registered under another provision of this chapter. The department shall cease collection of the fee under subd. 2. when the department has collected a total of $11,800 from either, or a combination of both, of the following sources:

a. The fee under subd. 2.

b. Any gift or contribution received by the department for purposes of funding the initial costs of production of the special plates under par. (c).

(c) The department shall furnish the owner of the vehicle registered under this section with registration plates of a distinctive design in lieu of the usual registration plates, and those plates shall show that the vehicle is registered as a historic military vehicle. The department shall specify the design for the registration plates furnished under this paragraph after consulting with a group or organization chartered in this state that is interested in historic military vehicles.

(3) A vehicle registered under this section may only be used for special occasions such as display and parade purposes, club activities, exhibitions, and tours, including traveling to and from such events, for necessary testing, maintenance, and storage purposes, and for occasional personal use, but not for regular transportation.

(4) A motorcycle may be registered under this section if all of the requirements for registration specified in this section are satisfied.

(5) Unless inconsistent with this section or s. 341.10 (6), the provisions applicable to other motor vehicles apply to vehicles registered under this section as historic military vehicles.

(6) The owner of a historic military vehicle may store unregistered, operable or inoperable, historic military vehicles and parts vehicles on the owner's property if the vehicles and parts vehicles and the outdoor storage area are maintained in such a manner that they do not constitute a health hazard and are screened from ordinary public view by means of a fence, rapidly growing trees, shrubbery, or other appropriate means.

History: 2009 a. 135; 2013 a. 103.