New Law Targets Disabled Parking Permit Renewals
By Space Coast Daily // October 23, 2012
Handicap Certification Now Required
BREVARD COUNTY • VIERA, FLORIDA – Sweeping changes are at hand for disabled and handicapped Florida residents relying on blue disabled parking permits.
The Florida Department of Highway Safety has announced that it has begun implementing new laws regarding blue disabled parking permits.
Starting this month, the permits must be renewed every four years and to obtain a permit, residents must provide a certificate of disability authenticated by a certifying authority within the past 12 months, according to a press release.
To renew the permit, residents must complete Florida Form HSMV 83039. Renewal applications are free and may be made online or at local tax collectors offices.
And as of July 1, if a permit is lost or stolen, a replacement will only be issued if the permit holder submits the same documentation required for renewals.
It does not affect Florida’s red temporary disabled parking permits and it will not affect individuals who have disabled wheelchair license plates.
The existing blue disabled permit law allows residents to renew permits every four years, but they did not have to certify their disability.
Blue disabled parking permit with current stickers must be visible from the front and rear of motor vehicles.
The law requires one side of the permit to display the applicant’s driver license number or state identification card number along with a warning that the motorist must have such identification at all times while using the permit.
Criminal penalties for fraudulently obtaining or using the permit can result in its confiscation and possible jail time.
For more information about the new blue permanent disabled parking permit law and renewal process, visit www.flhsmv.gov.
