Front license plates aren’t required in Oklahoma – but should they be?

(NEXSTAR) – Getting a new car? You’ll only need one license plate if you’re registering it in Oklahoma.

That’s because the Sooner State is one of 19 in the nation that doesn’t require a front and rear license plate. Only the back license plate is necessary. A majority of states now require both.

Any change to the license plate requirements would need to go through the state legislature, Emily Hill, senior director of communications at Service Oklahoma, told Nexstar.

A 2012 Texas A&M Transportation Institute suggests Oklahoma lawmakers might want to consider making the change.

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The study found displaying both front and rear plates saved time and money for law enforcement and other state agencies. It makes things easier for automatic plate readers at tollbooths and in paid parking lots.

“The interesting thing about this project is that it has allowed us to see how something as seemingly small as a license plate can have a tremendous impact on enforcement and operations,” said Melissa Walden, the senior research scientist who worked on the study.

For example, the study found that at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport found that 15% of parking transactions at the airports’ lots had to be processed manually because sun glare made it hard for the cameras to read rear plates. That takes up extra time, and therefore costs money.

In Virginia, the study found that as many as 23% of toll skippers weren’t able to be pursued for payment because rear plates were unreadable.

U.S. Border Patrol and other law enforcement agencies also told Texas A&M they prefer when front plates are attached and displayed.

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