August 24, 2023
R
egistration and Title Bulletin # 003-23
Policy and Procedure
TO
: All County Tax Assessor-Collectors and Dealers
SUBJECT: Senate Bill (SB) 505 - Electric Vehicle (EV) Fee
PURPOSE
The purpose of this bulletin is to provide guidance on the new EV fee for fully electric vehicles as a result of SB
505, enacted by the 88th Legislature, Regular Session.
DETAILS
Effective September 1, 2023, SB 505 amends Chapter 502, Transportation Code, by adding Section 502.360, which
requires fully electric cars and trucks with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 lbs. or less to be assessed an annual
$200 fee at time of initial registration or renewal. New EVs issued two years of registration to match a two-year
inspection will be assessed a $400 fee.
T
he new fee will be collected on EV registrations processed on or after September 1, 2023, along with vehicle
registration and other fees. Customers renewing their registration prior to September 1, 2023, will not be charged
the fee regardless of when their registration expires.
The EV fee will not apply to hybrid vehicles or vehicles with combination fuel types. Motorcycles, mopeds,
autocycles, and neighborhood electric vehicles will not be charged the EV fee. Additionally, governmental vehicles
with exempt registration and other vehicles for which no registration fee is due, including those with Disabled
Veteran and other meritorious military license plates, will not be assessed the EV fee.
E
ffective September 1, 2023, the Registration and Title System (RTS) and other applications used for titling and
registration (webDEALER, webSUB) along with the Internet Vehicle Title and Registration Service and Texas-by-
Texas online renewal systems will be programmed to determine if an EV fee is due based on the fuel type, vehicle
type, vehicle weight, and registration type.
F
or vehicles with September and October 2023 registration expiration, letters were mailed the week of July 24
th
to
inform EV owners of the change in state law and the impact to their renewal cost that is not reflected on their
renewal notice.
I
f the fuel type cannot be determined by the system, the customer will not be allowed to renew online and will be
directed to the county tax assessor-collector’s office to complete their renewal.
Dealers must collect the EV fee for all retail sales on or after September 1, 2023, that involve the issuance of title
and registration for fully electric cars and trucks with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 lbs. or less. Vehicles sold
prior to September 1, 2023, will not be assessed the EV fee, regardless of when the title and registration application
is submitted.
R
elease notes detailing these new programming changes in RTS and other titling and registration systems will be
distributed in August 2023.
CO
UNTY ACTION
Collect the EV fee determined by department systems. If a customer disputes the system-identified fuel type, the
county will be responsible for determining if the vehicle is, in fact, fully electric or not. Counties may use a Vehicle
Inspection Report or vehicle manufacturer specification information provided online or by the customer to validate
the fuel type. If the vehicle fuel type populated in RTS is found to be erroneous, use a supervisor override code to
change the previously decoded fuel type.
CO
NTACT
If you have any questions, please contact your local Texas Department of Motor Vehicles Regional Service Center.
Sincerely,
Annette Quintero, Director
Vehicle Titles and Registration Division
Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
