The issuance of motor vehicle license plate registration stickers is a costly and potentially flawed component of the vehicle registration renewal process, according to the Transportation Research Board (TRB). The Commonwealth of Pa. currently maintains an inventory of approximately 30 million such stickers — and many drivers are victims of plate theft or “plate clipping” (where the corner of the plate containing the sticker is cut off). A few states, including, New Jersey, report the same problem with sticker theft and have either phased out, or are planning to phase out, license plate stickers as part of their vehicle registration programs.
TRB will evaluate the potential costs and benefits (financial and law enforcement related) of doing away with license plate registration stickers as part of the registration renewal process for Pa. Stay tuned for an update on April 11, 2011.