Connecticut General Statutes Title 14. Motor Vehicles. Use of the Highway by Vehicles. Gasoline § 14-12. Motor vehicle registration.  Application.  Issuance by dealers.  Misrepresentation.  Registration number and certificate.  Requirements for registration.  Regulations.  Temporary registration.  Number of registered electric vehicles

(a) No motor vehicle shall be operated, towed or parked on any highway, except as otherwise expressly provided, unless it is registered with the commissioner, provided any motor vehicle may be towed for repairs or necessary work if it bears the markers of a licensed and registered dealer, manufacturer or repairer and provided any motor vehicle which is validly registered in another state may, for a period of sixty days following establishment by the owner of residence in this state, be operated on any highway without first being registered with the commissioner.  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, (1) a person commits an infraction if such person (A) registers a motor vehicle he or she does not own, or (B) operates, allows the operation of, parks or allows the parking of an unregistered motor vehicle on any highway, or (2) a resident of this state who operates or parks a motor vehicle such resident owns with marker plates issued by another state on any highway shall be fined one thousand dollars.  If the owner of a motor vehicle previously registered with the commissioner, the registration of which expired not more than thirty days previously, operates, allows the operation of, parks or allows that parking of such a motor vehicle, such owner shall be fined the amount designated for the infraction of failure to renew a registration, but the right to retain his or her operator's license shall not be affected.  No operator other than the owner shall be subject to penalty for the operation or parking of such a previously registered motor vehicle.  As used in this subsection, the term “unregistered motor vehicle” includes any vehicle that is not eligible for registration by the commissioner due to the absence of necessary equipment or other characteristics of the vehicle that make it unsuitable for highway operation, unless the operation of such vehicle is expressly permitted by another provision of this chapter or chapter 248.

(b) To obtain a motor vehicle registration, except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, the owner shall file in the office of the commissioner an application signed by him and containing such information and proof of ownership as the commissioner may require.  The application shall be made on blanks furnished by the commissioner.  The blanks shall be in such form and contain such provisions and information as the commissioner may determine.

(c) The commissioner may, for the more efficient administration of the commissioner's duties, appoint licensed dealers meeting qualifications established by the commissioner pursuant to regulations adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54,   1 to issue new registrations for passenger motor vehicles, motorcycles, campers, camp trailers, commercial trailers, service buses, school buses, trucks or other vehicle types as determined by the commissioner when they are sold by a licensed dealer.  The commissioner shall charge such dealer a fee of ten dollars for each new dealer issue form furnished for the purposes of this subsection.  A person purchasing a motor vehicle or other vehicle type as determined by the commissioner from a dealer so appointed and registering such vehicle pursuant to this section shall file an application with the dealer and pay, to the dealer, a fee in accordance with the provisions of section 14-49.  The commissioner shall prescribe the time and manner in which the application and fee shall be transmitted to the commissioner.

(d) A motor vehicle registration certificate issued upon an application containing any material false statement is void from the date of its issue and shall be surrendered, upon demand, with any number plate or plates, to the commissioner.  Any money paid for the registration certificate shall be forfeited to the state.  No person shall obtain or attempt to obtain any registration for another by misrepresentation or impersonation and any registration so obtained shall be void.  The commissioner may require each applicant for a motor vehicle registration to furnish personal identification satisfactory to the commissioner and may require any applicant who has established residence in this state for more than thirty days to obtain a motor vehicle operator's license, in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of section 14-36, or an identification card issued pursuant to section 1-1h.  Any person who violates any provision of this subsection and any person who fails to surrender a falsely obtained motor vehicle registration or number plate or plates upon the demand of the commissioner shall be fined not more than two hundred dollars.

(e) The commissioner may register any motor vehicle under the provisions of this chapter, may assign a distinguishing registration number to the registered motor vehicle and may then issue a certificate of registration to the owner.  A certificate of registration shall contain the registration number assigned to the motor vehicle and its vehicle identification number and shall be in such form and contain such further information as the commissioner determines.

(g) The commissioner may elect not to register any motor vehicle which is ten or more model years old and which has not been previously registered in this state until the same has been presented, as directed by the commissioner, at the main office or a branch office of the Department of Motor Vehicles or to any designated official emissions inspection station or other business or firm, authorized by the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles to conduct safety inspections, and has passed the inspection as to its safety features as required by the commissioner.  When a motor vehicle owned by a resident of this state is garaged in another jurisdiction and cannot be conveniently presented at an office of the Department of Motor Vehicles, an authorized emissions inspection station or other facility, the commissioner may accept an inspection made by authorities in such other jurisdiction or by appropriate military authorities, provided the commissioner determines that such inspection is comparable to that conducted by the Department of Motor Vehicles.  If the commissioner authorizes the contractor that operates the system of official emissions inspection stations or other business or firm to conduct the safety inspections required by this subsection, the commissioner may authorize the contractor or other business or firm to charge a fee, not to exceed fifteen dollars, for each such inspection.  The commissioner may authorize any motor vehicle dealer or repairer, licensed in accordance with section 14-52 and meeting qualifications established by the commissioner, to perform an inspection required by this section or to make repairs to any motor vehicle that has failed an initial safety inspection and to certify to the commissioner that the motor vehicle is in compliance with the safety and equipment standards for registration.  No such authorized dealer or repairer shall charge any additional fee to make such certification to the commissioner.  If the commissioner authorizes any such dealer or repairer to conduct safety inspections, such licensee may provide written certification to the commissioner, in such form and manner as the commissioner prescribes, as to compliance of any motor vehicle in its inventory with safety and equipment standards and such certification may be accepted by the commissioner as meeting the inspection requirements of this subsection.

(h) The commissioner shall not register any motor vehicle unless it meets the equipment related registration requirements contained in sections 14-80, 14-100, 14-100a, 14-100b, 14-106a and 14-275.

(i) The commissioner or any city, town, borough or other taxing district authorized under subsection (f) of section 14-33 may issue a temporary registration to the owner of a motor vehicle.  The application for a temporary registration shall conform to the provisions of this section.  A temporary registration may be issued for a time determined by the commissioner and may be renewed from time to time at the discretion of the commissioner.  The fee for a temporary registration or any renewal thereof shall be as provided in subsection (n) of section 14-49.

(j) The commissioner may issue a special use registration to the owner of a motor vehicle for a period not to exceed thirty days for the sole purpose of driving such vehicle to another state in which the vehicle is to be registered and exclusively used.  The application for such registration shall conform to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.  The commissioner may issue special use certificates and plates in such form as he may determine.  The special use certificate shall state such limitation on the operation of such vehicle and shall be carried in the vehicle at all times when it is being operated on any highway.

(k) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a), (b) and (e) of this section, the commissioner shall issue to a municipality, as defined in section 7-245, or a regional solid waste authority comprised of several municipalities, upon receipt of an application by the municipality or regional solid waste authority, a general distinguishing number plate for use on a motor vehicle owned or leased by such municipality or regional solid waste authority.

(l) Not later than January 1, 2018, the Department of Motor Vehicles shall record the number of electric vehicles, as defined in section 16-19eee, registered in the state.  This data shall be publicly available on the department's Internet web site and shall include (1) the number of electric vehicles registered in the state each year, and (2) the total number of electric vehicles registered in the state.  The department shall update this information every six months.