Vehicle registration plates of Massachusetts

Current Massachusetts license plate

Massachusetts was the first U.S. state to issue license plates, on September 1, 1903.^[1]

Passenger plates 1903 to 1966

In 1956, the U.S. states and Canadian provinces came to an agreement with the Automobile Manufacturers Association that fixed the size for license plates for vehicles, except those for motorcycles, at six inches in height by twelve inches in width, with standardized mounting holes. The 1955 (dated 1956) issue was the first Massachusetts license plate that complied with these standards.

Dates issued	Design	Serial format	Notes
1903	white on blue; "MASS AUTOMOBILE REGISTER" On top	1234
1904	white on blue; "MASS AUTOMOBILE REGISTER" On top	1234
1905	white on blue; "MASS AUTOMOBILE REGISTER" On top	12345
1906	white on blue; "MASS AUTOMOBILE REGISTER" On top	12345
1907	white on blue; "MASS AUTOMOBILE REGISTER" On top	12345
1908	blue on white	12345
1909	white on blue	12345
1910	blue on white	12345
1911	white on blue	12345
1912	blue on white	12345
1913	white on blue	12345
1914	blue on white	12345
1915	white on blue	12345
1916	blue on white	12345
1917	white on blue; MASS-1917 at bottom	123,456
1918	blue on white; MASS-1918 at bottom	123,456
1919	white on black; MASS-1919 at bottom	123,456
1920	blue on white; MASS-1920 at bottom	123,456
1921	white on blue; MASS-1921 at bottom	123,456
1922	blue on white; MASS-1922 at bottom	123,456
1923	white on blue; MASS-1923 at bottom	123,456
1924	white on maroon; MASS-1924 at bottom	123,456
1925	white on black; MASS-1925 at bottom	123,456
1926	white on blue; 1926-MASS at bottom	123,456
1927	white on maroon; MASS-1927 at bottom	123,456
1928	white on green; 1928-MASS at bottom	123,456
1929	white on blue; MASS-1929 at bottom	123,456
1930	white on maroon; 1930-MASS at bottom	123,456
1931	white on green; MASS-1931 at bottom	123,456
1932	white on maroon; 1932-MASS at bottom	123,456
1933	white on green; MASS-1933 at bottom	123,456
1934	white on maroon; MASS-1934 at bottom	123,456
1935	white on green; 1935-MASS at bottom	123,456
1936	white on maroon; MASS-36 at top	123,456
1937	white on green; 37-MASS at top	123,456
1938	white lettering on maroon base ; "MASS 38" at bottom	123·456
1939	white lettering on green base; "39 MASS" at bottom	123·456
1940	white lettering on maroon base ; "MASS 40" at top	123·456
1941	white lettering on green base; "41 MASS" at bottom	123·456
1942	white lettering on green and maroon bases; "MASS 42" at bottom	123·456	Revalidated for 1943 and 1944 with windshield stickers
1945	white lettering on dark blue base; "45 MASS" at top	123·456
1946	white lettering on black base; "46 MASS" at bottom	123·456
1947	white lettering on dark green base; "MASS 47" in embossed white box at top	123·456
1948	white lettering on maroon base; "48 MASS" in embossed white box at bottom	123·456
1949–50	white lettering on black base; "49 MASS" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1950 with windshield stickers.
1951–52	white lettering on maroon base; "MASS 51" in embossed white box at bottom	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1952 with windshield stickers.
1953–54	white lettering on black base; "MASS 53" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1954 with windshield stickers.
1955–56	white lettering on maroon base; "55 MASS" in embossed white box at bottom	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1956 with windshield stickers.
1957–58	white lettering on black base; "MASS 57" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1958 with windshield stickers.
1959–60	white lettering on maroon base; "59 MASS" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1960 with windshield stickers.
1961–62	white lettering on dark green base; "MASS 61" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1962 with windshield stickers.
1963	white lettering on black base; "63 MASS" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345
1964–65	white lettering on maroon base; "MASS 64" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345	Revalidated for 1965 with windshield stickers.
1966	white lettering and border on dark green base; "66 MASS" in embossed white box at top	123·456 A12·345

Passenger plates 1967 to present

For twenty years, starting in 1967, Massachusetts used three series of license plates that were nearly identical (Blue on White, Red on White, and Green on White). All had the identical semi-rounded letters and numbers and the word MASSACHUSETTS embossed in the same style, with an embossed quarter-inch border a quarter inch from the edge of the plate. The plates changed color twice, in 1972 and 1977; the red plates moved "MASSACHUSETTS" to the bottom of the plate, but the blue 1967 and green 1977 plates had it on the top.

Examples of vanity plates: those naming alcoholic beverages (left) are no longer permitted, and 'reserve' or 'legacy' plates (right) are usually inherited.

The current "Spirit of America" plates were introduced in 1987. The red number typeface remains virtually the same (though since 2005 the 1s have been serifed and 2010 the "D's" have changed shape to be discernible from a distance), but the border was dropped, and the state name is no longer embossed; it is italicized and blue, and no longer all capital letters. Additionally, the slogan "The Spirit of America" (from an advertising jingle from the early 1980s) was added in the same italicized blue typeface at the bottom. General registration plate, such as Dealer and Repair plates inverse the colors, Mass and Spirit in Red, number in blue.

Since 1969, serials on Massachusetts plates are coded with the month of expiration of the registration as the last numeric character, using 1 for January through 0 for October. X and Y were used from 1969 to 1977 for November and December. Registrants are issued plates expiring the last day of the previous month (i.e., a motorist registering a vehicle in June will be issued May plates). If a vehicle is registered in December or January (so that November and December plates would be called for), leftover plates are issued from other months with manufacturing overruns.

In addition to the standard numbering formats, Massachusetts also issues "reserve" plates. Reserve plates permit the plate holder to receive the same plate number when new plate styles are issued, or to transfer the plate number to family members. These plates are either all-numeric (1 through 99999) or consist of a single letter followed or preceded by a number (A 1 through Z 9999 and 1 A through 9999 Z). Reserve numbers may also be in the form of A#A, A##A, #A#, and #AA#, where # represents any number, and A represents any letter. Low number reserve plates (now called "Lottery Plates" by the RMV), are of the form #, ##, ###, ####, A#, A##, #A, and ##A only. When a registrant cancels a low number reserve registration, the number is placed in an annual lottery ( ^[2]). Registration for the lottery generally begins each June, and the drawing must be held by September 15. Prior to the institution of this annual lottery, low digit reserve plates were issued only to well-connected individuals, and it is widely believed that drivers with low registration numbers were given preferential treatment by law enforcement. The annual lottery was instituted in response to complaints about the politics behind the issuance of low-number registrations. As with standard registration plates, the final digit on low number reserve plates also indicates the month of expiration.

Two year registrations are mandatory, with the exception of vehicles initially registered during December or January. Vanity plates and motorcycle plates must be renewed annually. All vanity plate registrations expire on November 30, and all motorcycle and commercial registrations expire on December 31.

Starting with the 1987 "Spirit of Massachusetts" base, the three-letter abbreviation for the month of expiration is either embossed or screened in the upper left corner of the plate, with the exception of vanity plates which do not have the expiration month (NOV) screened or embossed. 'Red' Commercial were initially stamped without the month on the upper left corner, however that has since been added.

Currently, the only common license plate issued in the Commonwealth that is allowed to have more than 6 digits is Livery plates. All livery plate numbers start LV, even if not stamped.

Because the Registry of Motor Vehicles utilizes "Plate Type" to describe the type of registration, it is theoretically possible to have two plates issued with seemingly the same number. The follow describes some, but not all of the types, and the code used on vehicle registration:

PAN - Passenger: Normal
PAR - Passenger: Reserved
PAS - Passenger: Specialty (Antique, Veteran, Environmental, Sports, Spay & Neuter, Breast Cancer, United We Stand, etc.)
PAV - Passenger: Vanity
PAY - Passenger: Year of Manufacture (Antique plate with year stamped; AN gets added to the beginning of plate number on registration)
CON - Commercial: Normal (plates starting SR are for snow removal; HR for Hearse)
COR - Commercial: Reserved
COV - Commercial: Vanity
MCN - Motorcycle: Normal
MCR - Motorcycle: Reserved
MCS - Motorcycle: Specialty
MCV - Motorcycle: Vanity
AHN - Camper: Normal
AHR - Camper: Reserved
AHV - Camper: Vanity
AMN - Ambulance: Normal (includes Animal Ambulance)
AMR - Ambulance: Reserved
LVN - Livery: Normal
LVR - Livery: Reserved
LVV - Livery: Vanity
SPN - School Pupil: Normal
TAN - Taxi: Normal
TAR - Taxi: Reserved
TRN - Trailer: Normal (not used on Camper trailers)
TRR - Trailer: Reserved
VPN - Van Pool: Normal
SBN - School Bus: Normal
SBR - School Bus: Reserved
BUN - Bus: Normal
BUR - Bus: Reserved
BUV - Bus: Vanity

Dates issued	Design	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
1967–68	blue on reflective white with border line; "MASSACHUSETTS" at top	123·456 A12·345		Revalidated with windshield stickers through the end of 1969, then with plate stickers until 1972–73.
1969–71		123·45A	Coded by month of expiration (see right)	Staggered registration and plate stickers introduced with this serial format; the last digit corresponded to the month of expiration from January (1) through October (0), while X and Y suffixes corresponded to November and December respectively. Replaced 1972–73.
1972–78	red on reflective white with border line; "MASSACHUSETTS" at bottom	1A·2345 12A·340 123·456 A12·345 123·45A	Coded by month of expiration (see right)	Same month code system as on 1969–71 plates. 12A·340 format used only on plates expiring in October.^[3] Issued in alternating weeks from 1977, following the introduction of the green-on-white base (below), until supplies were exhausted. Replaced 1982–83.
1977–93	green on reflective white with border line; "MASSACHUSETTS" at top	123·ABC	100·AAA to 999·VZZ (see right)	Only rear plates issued (except for reserved and non-passenger plates). On all plates, the last digit corresponded to the month of expiration, with November and December expirations discontinued except on non-passenger plates and on red-and-white plates until 1980–81. All-numeric plates were generally issued to holders of the same serials on the red-on-white base. Still currently revalidated.
1983–93		123·456	100·000 to 999·999 (see right)
1987–present (vanity plates, low number reserve, and certain non-passenger types only) 1993–present (all plates)	red on reflective white; "Massachusetts" and "The Spirit of America" screened in blue at top and bottom respectively	Coded by month of expiration: 120·ABC	999·ZZZ to 100·WAA (reverse issue, final digit varied by month)
		123·0AB	100·9AA to ??? (final digit varied by month)
		1230 AB	??? to 9999 ZZ (final digit varied by month. January issued only through approx. 9991 TZ^[4])
		12A B30	10A A00 to 99Z Z00, then 10A A10 through 99Z Z10 and so on through 99Z Z90. Final digit varies by month.
		123 AB0	100 AA0 to 999 ZZ9. Final digit varies by month. October expirations discontinued after NZ0 series due to confusion with previous 123·ABC format.
		1AB 230 (all serials exhausted for October) 1ABC 20 (current format for October)	1AA 000 to present. Final digit varies by month.

Current passenger base plates

Currently, the 1977 green-on-white base as well as the 1987 "Spirit" base is valid for registration. The 1977 base only issued a single (rear) plate (Except Reserved, Commercial, and Taxi. Two plates were issued, thus both must be displayed, even today) whereas for the current "Spirit" base, two plates are issued. Registrants have the option of replacing the 1977 base with the "Spirit" base at no charge (though a different number will be used), however, most choose to keep their 1977 base plate as a point of pride. In many cases, the 1977 base plates are worn and illegible; legally per M.G.L. Ch. 90, a car with an illegible plate (regardless of age or color) must fail the state's annually required vehicle safety inspection. This is a safety fail, which under Mass law prohibits operation of the vehicle until the issue is corrected.

Image	First year of issue	Description	Current serial format	Serials previously issued	Notes
	1987	Red on reflective white base with screened state name and slogan in blue	Coded with "n" by month of expiration: 1AB 23n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October) 1ABC 20 (always expires in October)	Coded with "n" by month of expiration: 123 ABn (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October) 123 45n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October) 12n ABC (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October) 123n AB (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October) 12A B3n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October)
	1987	Low number reserve: Red on reflective white base with screened state name and slogan in blue	Coded with "n" by month of expiration: n (1 through 9 for January through September. 0 is never used.) 1n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) 12n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) 123n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) 1234n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) A n (1 through 9 for January through September. 0 is never used.) A 1n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) A 12n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) A 123n (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) n A (1 through 9 for January through September. 0 is never used.) 1n A (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) 12n A (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.) 123n A (1 through 9 for January through September, 0 for October.)

References

↑ Mass RMV : History of the Plate
↑ 2011 Low Plate Lottery Announcement
↑ "Massachusetts License Plates". allaboutlicenseplates.com. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
↑ Sage, Kit; Tanner, Eric. "licenseplates.cc Massachusetts highs page". Retrieved June 24, 2009.

External links

Massachusetts license plates 1969–present
Passenger Plates Booklet July 2014. Registry of Motor Vehicles (MassDOT). Retrieved 2014-07-02.
Pro-Life License Plates Available in Massachusetts. June 21, 2010. LifeSiteNews.com. Retrieved 2010-06-22.

Vehicle registration plates of the United States

States	Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Federal district	Washington, D.C.

Insular areas	American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands

Other registration plates	Native American tribes Designs and serial formats

By year	1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Vehicle registration plates of North America

Sovereign states	Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Canada Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic El Salvador Grenada Guatemala Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago United States

Dependencies and other territories	Anguilla Aruba Bermuda Bonaire British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Curaçao Greenland Guadeloupe Martinique Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten Turks and Caicos Islands United States Virgin Islands

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