NC DMV hopes to explore license plate material alternatives
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) –The North Carolina DMV has asked state lawmakers to allow for the study of alternative materials to make license plates amid a shortage of aluminum.
States across the country have begun to find and implement alternative license plate options to combat the change.
The state DMV also wants to, but can’t until the legislature allows for it.
NC DMV spokesperson Marty Holman said, “[the state’s] never run out of aluminum, but we’ve gotten scary close sometimes.”
North Carolina license plates were once made of steel and replaced annually.
There was a switch to aluminum, which allowed for nearly a decade to lapse before drivers needed a new plate.
“They can even go longer than that,” Holman explained.
However, just before the shortage began, state lawmakers passed legislation that required plates to be changed every seven years.
Law enforcement reported issues with visibility for license plates that had red letters.
Before the law could be phased in, the pandemic happened, causing a shortage in aluminum supplies.
“We have the ability to still swap out license plates for people who absolutely need it,” Holman explained. “We did ask [lawmakers] to change the law, but that was shot down this past session.
Roughly 15 to 20,000 license plates are printed each day in North Carolina.
They are done so out of a women’s correctional center in Raleigh.
While they have the supplies now, NC DMV wants to explore alternatives which could be pumped out of the plate plant.
DMV leaders plan to ask state lawmakers to fund a study of alternative materials that could be used at a cheaper cost, which can also improve visibility for law enforcement officers.
The material would also have to be as durable as aluminum.
Holmen said most of the alternatives in other states include, “different plastics, polycarbonates—if we get funding from the state legislature, we’d be able to study that. Find something cheaper or as cheap as aluminum.”
States have also begun to allow digital license plates.
“It’s an extra, kind of like a vanity plate,” Holmen explained. “You can get what you want on the plate, you can pay extra.”
These plates run off of a built-in battery, which lasts five years.
One of the main companies is RPlate.
The plates can also be used to identify if a vehicle is stolen, if an Amber Alert has been issued or if the tag itself is expired.
Holmen stressed that while it’s a cool concept, the study would have to identify if it would work in North Carolina as part of the solution.
A price tag connected to the study has not been decided on.
The study would also help determine what price changes, if any, could come for drivers during their license plate renewals.
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