DOT wrestles with issue of specialty license plates

In the parking lot at County Square, Jim Bowen, 27, attaches his USC tag to his car. The 1998 graduate of USC said he likes the fact that part of the $90 he pays every two years for the tag goes toward scholarships at the university. (OWEN RILEY JR./Staff) e-mail this story

"It's another way I can support the school," said the 1998 graduate.

However, while some states are considering dropping specialty plates because they are a drain on budgets in a poor economy, South Carolina's specialty plates are not supposed to be money-makers, said Joan Beardsley, Department of Public Safety spokeswoman.

A regular South Carolina plate costs $24, which goes to pay the cost of the plate, she said. The extra money charged for the special plates goes to the organization that requested the plate. The organizations must also pay a fee — usually $4,000 — to get a new plate printed.

According to state records, there are 99 different forms of plates offered, equaling 3,532,145 plates. The state's biggest seller is the regular blue plate with the palmetto tree with a little more than 2.9 million on the street.

People personalizing their regular plates account for almost 46,000, while more than 7,000 vehicles display the education tag with the apple, according to the analysis. They are the top sellers of nonstandard plates that are offered to the general public.

Plates for municipal, county and state government make up a large chunk of the plates, but are not offered to the general public.

The University of South Carolina has the most plates of any college with 4,897, with Clemson right behind at 4,674.

State Sen. Greg Ryberg, R-Aiken, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, said the state has talked about cutting down the number of specialty plates, but it is a safety issue and not due to cost. He worries that too many styles will confuse law enforcement officers trying to make a stop.

"At some point we need to address that," Ryberg said.

However, states, such as Oregon, are working on legislation that would cut back some plate styles because of the wide disparity in plate usage and due to the safety concerns.