Providing for an exception to motor vehicle window tint limitations for persons with certain medical conditions

Current law prohibits a person from operating on the highway a motor vehicle that is equipped with a front windshield, side window, or sidewing (window) which is excessively dark or reflective such that it is difficult for a person outside the motor vehicle to see into the motor vehicle through the window. By administrative rule, the department of transportation (DOT) defines “excessively dark or reflective” to mean that the window does not meet a minimum standard of transparency of percent light transmittance. This bill provides an exception to the prohibition on excessively dark or reflective motor vehicle windows where the person operating the motor vehicle has an affidavit signed by a physician, physician assistant, chiropractor, advanced registered nurse practitioner, or optometrist licensed under Iowa law stating that the person has a medical condition involving extreme sensitivity to light that makes it necessary for a motor vehicle operated by the person to be equipped with a window that would otherwise be prohibited. However, the bill requires the window to still meet a minimum standard of transparency of percent light transmittance.F. The bill requires the DOT to prescribe a form affidavit and design and issue a window decal. A person who operates a motor vehicle with window tint meeting a minimum standard of transparency of between percent and percent light transmittance under the bill must carry the affidavit in the vehicle at all times and affix the decal issued by the DOT to the rear window of the motor vehicle to inform law enforcement officers that the vehicle may be operated by a person who is medically exempt from the percent light transmittance requirement.438 is punishable by a scheduled fine of $70.