(a) In order to promote and financially provide for conservation, restoration, and enhancement of trout populations and the habitats upon which they depend by the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, there shall be issued beginning January 1, 2002, special license plates recognizing Trout Unlimited of Georgia.

(b) The commissioner shall design a special distinctive license plate appropriate for the purposes provided by this Code section. Such special license plate shall be of the same size as general issue motor vehicle license plates and shall include a unique design and an identifying number of not more than six digits. No two recipients shall receive identically numbered plates. Such design shall not include a space for a county name decal but shall instead bear the legend "Trout Unlimited" in lieu of the name of the county of issuance.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this Code section, this Code section shall not be implemented until such time as the State of Georgia has, through a licensing agreement or otherwise, received such license or other permission as may be required to implement this Code section. The design of the initial edition of such special license plate, as well as the design of subsequent editions and excepting only any part or parts of the designs owned by others and licensed to the state, shall be owned solely by the State of Georgia for its exclusive use and control, except as authorized by the commissioner. The commissioner may take such steps as may be necessary to give notice of and protect such right, including the copyright or copyrights. However, such steps shall be cumulative of the ownership and exclusive use and control established by this subsection as a matter of law, and no person shall reproduce or otherwise use such design or designs, except as authorized by the commissioner.

(d) On and after January 1, 2002, any Georgia resident who is the owner of a motor vehicle, except a vehicle registered under the International Registration Plan, upon complying with the motor vehicle laws relating to registration and licensing of motor vehicles and upon the payment of a fee of not more than $25.00 in addition to the regular motor vehicle registration fee, shall be issued a special license plate under this Code section in lieu of a general issue license plate. Any application for such special license plate shall be submitted during the owner's registration period, and such special license plate shall be issued within 30 days of such application. Revalidation decals shall, upon payment of fees required by law and collected by the county tag agent and remitted to the state as provided in Code Section 40-2-34, be issued for such special license plates in the same manner as provided for general issue license plates.

(e) The funds derived from the sale of such special license plates, less a $1.00 processing fee which shall be granted to county tag offices per plate sold, shall be deposited in the general fund of the state treasury. As soon as practicable after the end of each fiscal year, the commissioner shall report the net amount derived from the sale of such special license plates, not including actual manufacturing costs, to the Office of Planning and Budget and the Department of Natural Resources. It is the intent of the General Assembly that, subject to appropriation, an amount equal to such net proceeds derived from the sale of such license plates in any fiscal year shall be made available during the following fiscal year to supplement trout restoration and management programs of the Wildlife Resources Division of the Department of Natural Resources. Such programs may include trout hatchery operations, stocking or restocking of trout in waters of the state, rehabilitation of trout habitat areas on state managed wildlife lands, education programs, technical assistance to private landowners in the rehabilitation and maintenance of trout habitats on their lands, and projects to encourage public support for the license plate and the activities it funds. The Department of Natural Resources shall monitor the response of the trout populations to any such habitat conservation activities to determine their effectiveness.

(f) Special license plates issued under this Code section shall be transferred from one vehicle to another vehicle in accordance with the provisions of Code Section 40-2-80.

(g) The Department of Natural Resources shall submit a report to the chairpersons of the Senate Natural Resources Committee and the House Committee on Game, Fish, and Parks detailing the revenues derived from the sale of special license plates issued under this Code section and the receipt and expenditure of any funds appropriated for the purposes provided by this Code section. Such report shall be made not later than the second Monday of January of each year.