Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 9, September 1, 2024
(1) A person who wishes to obtain custom
plates must submit an application for custom plates and all applicable fees to
DMV. Custom plate choices:
(a) May not be
reserved in advance of application and payment of required fees; and
(b) Are approved and assigned by DMV on a
first-come, first-served basis. When two or more applications requesting an
identical plate choice are received, DMV will consider for approval the first
one received with the required fees, without regard to whether the first
application received is an original application for a custom plate or an
application for renewal of a custom plate that has been expired for more than
180 days. "Application," as used in this subsection, may include application by
phone or electronic submission, provided DMV is in possession of the required
fees.
(2) An applicant
for custom plates must qualify for Oregon title and registration for the
vehicle listed on the custom plate application.
(3) A custom plate choice is assigned to a
vehicle at the time the plate is issued by DMV.
(4) A custom plate choice must:
(a) Be compatible with DMV's computer
system;
(b) Not be identical to any
plate configuration reserved for:
(A)
Qualified Congressional Medal of Honor recipients;
(B) Current Oregon office holders;
(C) An Honorary Consul as defined in ORS
805.117; or
(D) The Governor, unless the custom plate is
issued under the provisions of OAR
735-046-0050;
(c) Not begin with the letters CMH, MOH, ORE,
SEN, REP, USS, or USR and be followed by numbers;
(d) Be alphabetic or numeric characters, or
alphanumeric characters, without any punctuation or symbols other than a dash
or space;
(e) Include at least one
alphabetic or numeric character;
(f) Be limited to no more than six alphabetic
characters, numeric characters, spaces or dashes, except that a seventh
character may be a space or dash;
(g) Except as provided in section (5) of this
rule, not be identical to any other plate configuration in current use. The use
of a space or a dash within a plate choice is not considered when determining
whether the plate is identical to another plate configuration.
(5) In addition to other
provisions of this rule, all of the following apply to approval of a plate
choice that is identical to a plate configuration that is in current use:
(a) DMV may approve a plate choice that
conflicts with a plate configuration currently in use for motor vehicles
registered under ORS 803.420(6)(a)
(i.e., passenger plated vehicles) if:
(A) The
specific plate configuration requested has previously been issued and is not
still in inventory or reserved for future issuance;
(B) The previously issued plates bearing the
plate choice are surrendered to DMV with the custom plate request, or are no
longer in circulation. If there is any question about such plates being in
circulation, it is the applicant's responsibility to satisfy DMV that the
plates have been destroyed, surrendered to DMV or another jurisdiction, or are
not available for use on a vehicle; and
(C) The plate choice is to be assigned to a
vehicle that qualifies for registration under ORS
803.420(6)(a).
(b) For motor vehicles other than those
registered under ORS 803.420(6)(a),
specifically, vehicles that are not passenger plated vehicles, DMV may approve
a plate choice that is identical to a plate configuration that is in current
use if:
(A) The vehicle to which the custom
plates are to be issued is of a different type than the vehicle to which the
plates bearing the identical plate configuration are in current use or could be
issued. For example, a plate choice that is identical to a disabled veteran
plate configuration (for example D00001) will not be assigned to a custom plate
issued to either a passenger vehicle or motor home. A plate choice that is
identical to a motor home plate configuration (for example H00001) will not be
assigned to a custom plate issued to a motor home but DMV may allow the
configuration to be assigned to a custom plate issued to a passenger
vehicle;
(B) The plate choice
requested is not currently assigned to a registration plate; and
(C) The plate choice requested will not be
assigned to a future plate series.
(6) DMV will not approve a custom plate
choice, including plate choices that would do so by means of foreign or slang
words or phrases, by use of phonetic, numeric or reverse spelling, or by being
viewed in mirror image, that:
(a) Would have
the effect of alarming, threatening, offending or misleading a reasonable
person. Such choices may include, but are not limited to, combinations of
letters, numbers or both that:
(A) Refer to
intimate bodily parts or to sexual or excretory acts or functions;
(B) Refer in an alarming or offensive manner
to a person or class of persons on the basis of race, color, gender, ethnic
heritage, national origin, or other characteristic;
(C) Suggest that the vehicle to which the
custom plate is issued is an official vehicle of a public agency or official,
when it is in fact not such a vehicle; or
(D) Refer to illegal acts.
(b) Refer to alcoholic beverages,
or controlled substances or paraphernalia used in the consumption thereof by
combinations of letters, numbers or both.
(7) DMV may use any reliable lexicological
source to determine the meaning of any word, symbol or phrase.
(8) When reviewing a plate choice for
approval, DMV need not consider the applicant's subjective intent or declared
meaning.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS
184.619,
802.010,
805.103,
805.200,
805.205 &
805.220
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS
803.420,
803.535,
805.103,
805.200,
805.220,
805.240 &
805.250
