Monday, October 1, 2012

Getting Your Florida Specialty License Plates

By Patrice McCoy



If there is a cause or an organization that you feel strongly about, you will probably want to shout out your support from the rooftops. Of course, you can put a bumper sticker about that cause on your car where everybody will see it, but it will ruin the paintwork. However, if you live in the Sunshine State, there is another option. You can get one of the Florida specialty license plates for your car instead.

Since the mid-1980s, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles has been making it possible for Floridians to raise money for certain organizations or causes. You pay an annual fee for specialty plates. This fee then goes into the coffers of the organization that you chose, or to organizations that work for the cause that you support.

There are currently 123 different plate designs to choose from. Each design represents an organization or a cause. You can choose a design from the environmental category or you can choose to support a professional sports team or university. There is also a miscellaneous category.

If environmental issues are your passion, you can choose your favorite issue and get a design with an environmental theme. For example, if you feel strongly about overfishing, you can get a design about catch-and-release fishing. Other more general environmental themes include the importance of trees, pet sterilization and aquaculture. You can also choose a cause that is specific to the Sunshine State, like the conservation of the Everglades. Animals native to the state, like sea turtles and manatees, are represented too.

You can also support your favorite Florida professional sports team. Football, basketball, baseball and hockey are all represented in the category of professional sports. So, if you live and breathe the Miami Dolphins, you can pimp your ride too.

Another theme is the state's universities and colleges. You can support the school that your children or grandchildren attend. Alternatively, you can give back to the university or college where you got your education.

There are also some miscellaneous causes and specific organizations. These include causes like road safety, organ donation, anti-drug campaigns or supporting America's troops. If you prefer to support the troops in a more direct way, you can get a design for any division of the armed forces, like the Navy or the Marines. The Coast Guard, the Boy Scouts and American Red Cross are all represented. Even NASCAR has a design.

You can get your plates online or from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. If your car already has license plates, you simply need to pay a few dollars extra and request the specialty design of your choice. A better option, however, is to wait until you need to renew your registration and then switch to a new design.

The cost of these designs is the normal fees plus an extra annual fee, usually $25. This additional fee goes to the cause or organization you have chosen to support. More than $500 million have been raised in this way since the program started. So, if you want to join the 1.2 million Floridians who buy Florida specialty license plates every year to show that they care, get yours soon.




About the Author:

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