Last January, a young driver was pulled over by a Canadian County deputy because he didn’t have a tag on his car.

Roughly 14 minutes into that traffic stop, just as the deputy was telling the driver he was free to go - because he had not broken the law - a driver who had fallen asleep plowed into the young man’s vehicle at an estimated 70 miles per hour (see the video below).

[Hear the KRMG In Depth Report with Sen. Greg Treat and his son Mason HERE]

That young driver was Mason Treat, the son of Oklahoma Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat, and the Senator vowed he would see to it lawmakers passed changes to state law which would prevent innocent drivers from getting pulled over, prevent law enforcement from wasting time pulling over innocent people, and help make the roads safer at the same time.

The result is the Mason Treat Act, which changes how the state handles tags following the sale of used vehicles.

“Starting September 1, paper tags at a dealership will be good for ten days, and ten days only,” Sen. Treat told KRMG Thursday. “And, a private sale can either print a little tag at their home computer, but more importantly, they can go down to - what used to, what we call as tag agents historically, they’re called Service Oklahoma centers now - you can go there and get a metal tag immediately upon the sale, so you won’t be going out there without a tag on the back of your car.”

Under the current law, he said, it can take up to 60 days to take a used car, especially when it’s purchased from a private individual.

Sen. Treat tells KRMG it was the House co-author of the bill who named it after his son, and that he’s honored by the gesture.

Mason Treat tells KRMG he has no memory whatsoever of the events of that day.

“I remember the night before, hanging out with my friends - and then, that’s all,” he told KRMG.

The law named for him will have a major impact on used car dealers, who will now have 48 hours to pre-register all vehicles sold with the state.

It also creates a new registry of Authorized Temporary License Plate Vendors.

You can see the state’s explanation of the new law, and the video posted for used vehicle dealers benefit, on the Oklahoma.gov website.