Window tinting is something that many car owners resort too for the looks that it brings to your car but also a host more advantages that are otherwise unattainable. At the same time though, personal preferences are not always the same nor do they guarantee alignment with interests of the general public.
It is here that the role of governments spring up. Depending on the issue in question, the law at play might be one that is of a federal nature or one passed at state level.
In the case of window tinting thus, states across the states have the preserve of spelling out how dark or reflective the windows of the cars of people driving through them are to be.
For Alaska, the legislation in question goes as far back as 1994. Should you have the intention to tint your car in the state therefore, it is crucial that you are up to speed with what it is that it stipulates. Indeed, it is for this sole reason that this article is written.
Understanding that reading legal instruments themselves can mean to be difficult thanks to the jargons of lawyers that tend to cut off most of the rest of society, I have written in simple day-to-day English which is understandable and importantly, carries the gist of what the requirements that drivers in Alaska are expected to meet.
The essay hence goes through the standards of window tinting darkness and window tinting reflection to start with but also goes on to share other important aspects of Alaska tint law that I feel you should know.
The closing sections cover aspects of enforcement, general questions that people ask regarding tinting (not necessarily legal), and some facts about the state that you might have note known.
You can be sure to that the information shared is up to date taking in consideration issues like change in currency value where money figures are shared amongst other things. Ultimately, I hope that you find the writing useful. Let me know in the comments.
Window Tint Darkness Regulations in Alaska
Window Tint Darkness revolves around the amount of light that windows of a car allow into the inside. In order to fully appreciate how this concept works though, one needs to appreciate first how it is that window tint darkness is measured.
The said units are known as Visible Light Transmission also VLT. VLT is measured in percentages with the highest of them indicating that the car is allowing in a lot of light through its windows.
A 90% window tinting darkness will as such mean that the car in question would be emitting three times as much light than another whose window tinting is be at 30%.
We can now turn to the determinants that states often rely on when determining what VLT minimum is to be asked of car windows. Mainly, there are two of them.
The first is about the position of a window on a car. Typically thus, you will find that governments always ask that window shields have significantly higher VLT than other car windows.
This is no surprise since the said point is where drivers get to directly view the road in which case there would be significantly more accidents if people adopt dark tinting for it.
And as we will see, the law in Alaska pays particular interest to this notion. The consensus here is so much so that even folks who love darkness on the inside will not tint these windows whether there is a law spelling out the same or not.
The second factor relates to the car type and purpose. Because of the buildup of certain vehicles, it becomes much more risky if they stick to very low VLT percentages either for the people it carries or other road users. Additionally, the work of a car can make a difference too.
If it carries more people for instance, law makers are likely to ask that as much as possible the VLT is limited since any mishaps that the tinting might cause would affect a bigger number of stakeholders.
The two considerations above are not always taken up in legislation all the time though, thus for Alaska, the tint darkness applies in equal measure regardless of the vehicle that one drives.
It does not matter the said car is a Sedan, SUV, Van, or a Multi-purpose one. Here is the VLT percentage that must be met thus;
- Windshield: Tint can only be used within the top five inches of the screen.
- Front shield windows: A minimum of 70% VLT must be allowed in through this screen.
- Back shield windows: A minimum of 40% VLT must be allowed in through this screen.
- Rear window: A minimum of 40% VLT must be allowed in through this screen.
The above figure notwithstanding however, Alaska allows one to vary their tint by within 3% of the minimum VLT that the law requires.
That is to say that the places where at least 40% VLT must be allowed entry, a driver can do 37% VLT and 67% VLT for the front shield windows. This allowance does not apply to the windshield though.
Window Tint Reflection in Alaska
Away from window tint darkness, another major facet of tinting law is window tinting reflection. Many people might not appreciate the depth of tinting reflection though it equally serves the functions that they will usually look out for from tinting darkness sometimes doing so in an even better way.
The difference comes about in the way the two approaches go about in accomplishing the tasks presented to them.
Whilst window tinting darkness blocks light from passing through the screen onto which it is dressed, tinting reflection averts the rays coming its way to somewhere else.
Add window tint reflection to window tint darkness and you would have completed the body of a project that is very much worth a try.
To be sure however, a car owner can only choose either at a time. Should you not yet know which one of the two you are sure of, you can always inquire from your mechanic. My advice to the folks with more than one car would be to give both a try by employing one on one vehicle and the other on the second one.
Window reflection can be translated into figures and this is usually done by establishing the amount of light that is allowed into the car by the window on which reflective tint is placed.
That way, a state can determine the standard to write in the law. Interesting enough though, is that Alaska follows an altogether different approach. It instead restrains the material to be used when manufacturing the films of tint to be dressed on the cars passing through the state.
It is that then automatically keeps window tinting reflection at the levels that government wishes it.
Like window tint darkness, window tint regulation law specifics are often determined by the car type that one drives but also, the place on the vehicle that the different windows occupy.
In the case of Alaska however, none of these apply as the requisites are blanket instead i.e. they extend to all cars and all windows. All vehicles in the state therefore and the screens attached to them are thus not to use tint reflection that has an effect of mirroring objects next to the window.
Further, the said tint should not made from metallic material.
This prohibitory approach is also extended by the state in relation to tint reflection colors. As is the case that some colors are reflective than others, it matters in window tint regulation what colors a vehicle’s windows are tinted with on top of the tint material and the light allowed in.
Hence, Alaska prohibits usage of all colors in tint reflection except four. These are; neutral smoke, gray, bronze, and green.
Other Alaska Window Tint Rules and Regulations
On top of window tint darkness and window tint window tint reflections general provisions, Alaska equally has other provisions that you should know about as an individual that intends to add tint to your car.
The best way to think about these is that they are of a complementary nature i.e. they bring further clarity the two broad aspects of tinting law or help fill the gaps that remain open.
Otherwise, it is not enough to only know what we have shared so far. Let us see then what it is else then that these details are;
- Certificates and stickers: many states in the US demand that producers of tint award certificates to the individuals that buy their products. When it comes to Alaska however, things are different. None of this is required. You only have to go buy the film and then place it on the vehicle.
Likewise, car owners usually obtain stickers indicating the fact that it complies with the state law tinting laws yet Alaska requires none of this still. This and the above realities should not be mistaken for unenforceability. Police officers will pull you over if they suspect that your car tint is illegal and there are consequences to be faced. The same is true for tint manufacturers.
- Side mirrors: this is yet another unconventional way of doing things in Alaska in testament to the liberalism that the code relating to tinting embodies.
While conventionally states require cars with very dark tinting to have both side mirrors attached to them in compensation for windows as a way of seeing road users coming from behind, Alaska asks none of this.
Another way to look at this is understanding the fact that the rear windows are never totally dark as per the window darkness restrictions. Imposing two demands for the same rationale might thus be seen as going a little too far.
- Medical exceptions: the caps on light to be allowed inside the vehicle notwithstanding, the state is alive to the fact that some people would find great difficulties on the road if special room is not created for them given their medical situations. More often than not, these are folks for whom if too much lighting or heat were to contact with their eyes or skins their health would deteriorate.
If you are one such person, all that would be required of you is to obtain a letter from a physician indicating your issue after which you can go to a tint shop and have your car worked upon. Such medical personnel should be licensed to practice in Alaska though.
Notice that this approach is again, significantly different from the way that other states usually go about this issue as you do not need to reach out to the government directly. This is nice since the alternative processes are often bureaucratic. That said, you will need to make arrangements to visit the Doc again after a year has passed.
Medical exceptions are allowed for cars owned by persons falling in the categories explained as well as those in which these individuals frequently travel.
- Penalties: As you may expect, simply stipulating what drivers should do and not do would be insufficient if there are no consequences to be met on those that violate the terms of the law. Unlike some states, Alaska only subjects those that are found to be working contrary to window tint laws to only fines i.e. there is no jail term.
This is explained by the fact that these offences are classified as mere infractions a category that is of lesser significance category than misdemeanors for instance. The specific price to be paid is $300 plus a surcharge of $10.
In practice, the fine does not accrue right away as once your car is pulled over a fix-it order will be issued to you first. It will instruct you to remove the illegal tint. The fine is given to those individuals who violate this directive.
Conclusion
Window tint regulations do not operate in a vacuum. I thought thus, that I should share some practical knowledge which I am sure you will benefit from once you have set out to tint your car. Now, there is a lot to say in this regard but since this article’s main focus is the legalese, we will restrict ourselves to only two things here i.e. window cost and then subtle benefits of tinting.
- Cost: the price that will be asked of you is not static as it is influenced by numerous things one of which is quality. Classic film thus costs $150 whereas one of a high quality will go for roughly $400. While the latter sum is significant, do not shy away from paying it if you can, it is worth it.
- Subtle functions: we all know the general advantages of tinting i.e. privacy, aesthetics, etc. Did you know that this practice helps your car new though? Well, it does so by reducing the wearing for the parts on the inside through mitigating the heat levels that enter the car.
Moreover, by keeping the car cool, it means that you will not need air conditioning and so it saves you energy combustion.
Alaska State Info
Alaska is located in the Northwest region of the United States of America and it has an international border with Canada. It is also neighbors with both the Pacific and Arctic Oceans.
Interestingly, while the state covers the biggest part of land in the country (over 1,717,000 km sq), it is the fourth least populous in the whole of the United States of America (it inhabits approximately 732,000 people). Effectively then, Alaska is the least densely populated state.
It is also the case that most Alaskans stay in her cities. Juneau is the state capital. As for the economy, it is heavily dominated by Oil and Natural Gas as well as Fishing.
Cities in Alaska: Anchorage, Juneau, Fairbanks, Homer, Sitka, Nome, Ketchikan, Barrow, Wasilla, North Pole, Kodiak, Seward, Kenai, Valdez, Unalaska, Soldotna, Palmer, Tanana, Bethel, Girdwood, Kotzebue, Whittier, Gustavus, Adak, Cordova, Eagle River, Petersburg, Wrangell, Eagle, The City and Borough of Yakutat, Dillingham, Cold Bay, Kake, Galena, Deadhorse, Unalakleet, Eska, Noorvik, Bettles, Platinum, Chugiak, Delta Junction, Diomede, Eek, Nenana, Kivalina, Wales, Alyeska, Shishmaref, Pelican
Counties in Alaska: Aleutians East Borough, Municipality of Anchorage, Bristol Bay Borough, Denali Borough, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Haines Borough, City and Borough of Juneau, Kenai Peninsula Borough, Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Kodiak Island Borough, Lake and Peninsula Borough, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, North Slope Borough, Northwest Arctic Borough, Petersburg Borough, City and Borough of Sitka, Municipality of Skagway, City and Borough of Wrangell, City and Borough of Yakutat
Tint Law References:
Alaska Statutes Title 1 Chapter 04 Sec. 223 – Tinted vehicle windows
Municipality of Anchorage – Traffic, Vehicle Equipment FAQ – Tinted Windows