Legislation
Legislation
As of July 1, 2017, a person with a qualifying degree of autism may request DMV to place an indicator the person is autistic on a driver’s license or state-issued identification card and to issue a decal to affix to a license plate and a placard which may be displayed in the vehicle. The application requires a physician's confirmation of a qualifying condition. The person may choose how to display the placard, but in most cases, it will likely be placed on the driver’s side dash.
A qualifying person may choose to utilize all, some, or none of the indicators. If no indicator is utilized or observed, a person with autism may still be present. Likewise, the placard or tag decal does not guarantee the person with autism is in the vehicle.
The intent is to offer a method for officers to recognize when they may be approaching a person with a relevant cognition condition. See Senate Bill 74 for more information or read the bill summary.
It is a class C Misdemeanor for misrepresentation to obtain the placard, decal, license, or ID card and an unclassified misdemeanor ($100-$300 fine) to misuse the devices.
This is an example of the front and back of an autism placard:
The tag decal (puzzle pieces) is displayed in the left corner of the license plate:
The indicator on the Driver’s License is a “J” in the “Restriction” field and the explanation “J25-Cognitive Disorder” on the back. A similar indicator will be on the State ID Card.
