Sales and revenue for specialty license plates already indicated a downward turn with the closing of DMV offices and some Tax Collectors offices to the public in certain parts of the state in the last week of the month of March, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Total revenue from the sale of Specialty License Plates for the month of March, 2020 dropped 8% to $2,459,767.00, compared to $2,674,503.00 for March 2019. More significantly, for new plate issues/sales, which drive the ongoing annual renewal revenue, usually for 10 years, there was a very significant 31% drop from 18,362 to 12,701 compared to March, 2019.
Total revenue from the sale of Specialty License Plates for the month of April, 2020 dropped 19% to $2,151,419.00, compared to $2,674,323.00 for April 2019; a loss of $495,904.00.
More significantly, for new plate issues/sales, which drive the ongoing annual renewal revenue, usually for 10 years, there was a very significant 75% drop from 18,202 to 4,616 compared to April, 2019.
The estimated impact of a 75% drop in new specialty license plate sales in April, 2020, amounts to an impact of approximately $3,396,500.00 over the next 10 years.

The Top 5 specialty plates, who will no doubt weather the storm easier than those plates who do not achieve over $100,000.00 in monthly specialty plate revenue, also saw a decline in total revenue.
University of Florida saw a 14% drop in total revenue for April, 2020 ($22,275.00); Helping Sea Turtles Survive dropped 18% ($25,990.00); Florida State University dropped 19% ($23,575.00); Endless Summer dropped 21% ($27,995.00) and Miami Heat dropped 14% ($13,150.00).
The drop in new plate sales was significant across the board, with Endless Summer dropping 78% from 1,336 to 579; Helping Sea Turtles Survive dropped 80% from 1,011 to 197; University of Florida dropped 71% from 534 to 155; Florida State University dropped 71% from 457 to 132 and Miami Heat dropped over 50% from 975 to 481.

​Visit our Lights following on from its gains in March, again saw a slight increase in revenue for April 2020 compared to April 2019 from $8,475.00 to $8,700.00, but saw a decrease in new plate sales from 53 to 41.
Lauren's Kids fell 41% in revenue and 79% in new plate sales. Golf Capital of the World fell 19% in revenue and 78% in new plate sales. Protect Wild Dolphins fell 18% in revenue and 87% in new plate sales.
Protect our Oceans/Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation fell 22% in revenue and 77% in new plate sales. Choose Life fell 15% in revenue and 86% in new plate sales. Protect Florida Whales fell 19% in revenue and 87% in new plate sales. Imagine fell 23% in revenue and 79% in new plate sales.
Plates (excluding college plates) that saw less than 10 new plate sales in April 2019, included:
A State of Vision (4)
Agriculture Education (2)
Family Values (5)
Florida Sheriff's Youth Ranches (6)
Florida Panthers (8)
Keep Kids Drug Free (2)
Kids Deserve Justice (2)
Moffitt Cancer Center (0)
Nascar (5)
Olympic Spirit (9)
Parents Make a Difference (0)
Scouting Teaches Values (2)
Special Olympics (3)
Support Homeownership for All (8)
Support our Troops (9)
Tampa Bay Rays (7)

Miami Heat sold the most new plates in April 2020 (481).

The biennial fee count (2 year registration renewals) for April 2020 also dropped 32% as compared to the month of April 2019.

​In an effort to break up our COVID-19 coverage, the Idaho Press recently asked its readers to share their opinions on something a little different, something they probably see every day but never really give a second thought to: license plates.
Idaho was actually the first state to put a slogan on its license plate. While most states opt to put their state slogan on their plates, Idaho chose not “Esto Perpetua” but instead “Famous Potatoes,” which started appearing on default plates in 1928. If that wasn't enough, there have been several specialty plates offered over the years that feature pictures of potatoes painted on. In 2019, the specialty plate with a baked potato on it brought in $30,980.
Specifically, Idaho’s default license plate. Red, white, blue and silhouetted by trees, Idaho’s default plate hasn’t changed since 1991. It’s currently tied as the fourth-oldest continuously issued plate in the country, and we wanted to know if Idahoans thought it was time for an upgrade. Or, as one reader comment put it, we were “really fishing the bottom of the barrel with ideas.”

​However, when theirr readers weighed in on Facebook and Twitter they were actually taking part in a 92-year-long debate that has divided Idahoans, drawn national critique and, according to some, represented a battle for the very soul of the Gem State.
The current design on the default plates was created as a specialty plate in preparation for the 1991 centennial celebration of Idaho becoming a state. Originally, the proceeds from the plate went to the Idaho Centennial Commission to raise funds for the celebration. But the plate ended up being such a hit, the state wanted the design as its standard plate, replacing the green and white mountain range design that have been in use since 1985.
The state now pays 50 cents per plate to use the design on the default plates, with the money going to the Idaho Heritage Trust to support historic buildings, sites, and artifacts throughout Idaho.
When a state gets a new default plate, there is a bump in revenue for the state, as drivers are required to get updated plates. Apart from that, specialty plates have long been used as a creative way to raise funds around the state. In 2019, specialty plates brought in $1,645,249 to the various organizations they support.
The bestseller, by a wide margin, was the wildlife line of plates that feature either a bluebird, a trout or an elk. It brought in $852,485 to Idaho’s conservation efforts. According the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Foundation, proceeds from the plate are one of the few options Idahoans have to support wildlife in Idaho, as “no state tax dollars are provided for wildlife diversity, conservation education and recreation programs.”

​The specialty plate that had our readers most split, however, was Idaho’s newest offering. The Pet Friendly license plate was created after a bipartisan push in the Idaho Legislature to create a plate that could help fund spay and neuter efforts in rural Idaho. It has a decidedly more … rustic look.
“It looks like something I would draw. And I can’t draw." — Rebecca De León
But for some, that’s why they like it.
“I love the Pet Friendly plate. I love the artwork. I love that the money goes to help animals.” — Terri Peterson Hill
It brought in $19,064 in 2019.

​While the 2019 Legislature was largely in support of the Pet Friendly plate, a divisive tale of two license plates played out in 2020: A Republican-sponsored bill to create an anti-abortion plate that would raise funds for Choose Life Idaho and a Democrat-sponsored bill for a “Too Great For Hate” plate which would benefit the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial. The choose life plate passed and was signed into law by Gov. Brad Little on March 4, while the too great for hate plate was shot down by the House in its last vote of the session, failing 32-30.

​Since Idaho required residents to have license plates in 1913, Idaho has had 60 default plate designs. Sort of. Most of those changes were minor, as from 1913 to 1968 the license plates had the year embossed on them and thus required a new “design” each year.
However, for the last 92 years, one thing hasn’t changed.
“Idaho potatoes represent $5-6 billion in total revenue to the state,” Frank Muir, president and CEO of the Idaho Potato Commission, explained. “I’ve traveled to 30 different countries and as soon as I say I’m from Idaho, people always say, ‘Oh! Potatoes!” And the key is this: they always say it with a smile. They connect potatoes in a good way, in a positive way, to the state.”
Regardless of how people might feel about the design, it's going to be around for awhile. In March 2020, Gov. Little signed into law legislation that now gives Idahoans 10 years before they have to buy new plates. This means that, at the very minimum, the red, white and blue default plate will be around until 2034.
Story by Ashley Miller, Digital Editor for the Idaho Press. You can reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on twitter @aminboise.

​Hand tattoos, a Florida Gators license plate and the suspect’s wife help police catch a seafood theft suspect.
A Port Orange man driving a car with a Florida Gators specialty license plate broke into a seafood store to steal gator tail meat, police said.
James Ellison, 30, already suspected in other burglaries, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with two counts of armed burglary by Port Orange police. Ellison, who was previously arrested in a boat burglary by Volusia County deputies, was in jail on Wednesday without bail.
Port Orange police were able to quickly identify Ellison based on information gathered by Volusia deputies when they arrested the Port Orange man for a boat burglary in April.
Deputies obtained video showing Ellison’s hand that had his daughters’ names tattooed on it. In the video deputies obtained, a Hyundai car with a Gators front license plate is also seen. Port Orange police saw the same hand tattoo and the specialty license plate in the seafood store’s video surveillance, a Port Orange report states.
Police also got help from Ellison’s wife, who confirmed the tattoos and his identity and reported that Ellision had stolen from the seafood store on several other occasions, Port Orange police investigators said.
Ellison’s wife also reported that her husband had a penchant for fishing equipment but had also stolen lawn equipment and firearms. The woman told police some of the stolen items were in Ellison’s garage, a report shows.
For many years now, Florida legislators and certain DMV staff have verbalized their opposition to new and, in some cases, existing specialty license plates, arguing that the plates interfere with law enforcement as they cannot identify the license plate. This is clearly an example of how this particular specialty license plate assisted law enforcement, and there are many other instances of this.