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A law that was signed into effect by Governor Greg Abbott back in June of 2023 is set to officially take effect this summer. The law will cause all paper license plates in the state of Texas to be replaced by metal ones. This law originates with House Bill 718. The official date in which the law will take effect is July 1, so there is still over a month to go before the plate change will be enforced.

This change affects the license plate that will be on the vehicle when it is purchased.

Typically, when you buy a new car from a dealership, the car has paper plates, and you get metal plates for your vehicle when the registration goes through. However, under the new law, these temporary plates will no longer be allowed.

The law is due to an increase in concern over fraudulent paper plates.

Over the last few years, there has been a rise in bootleg paper plates. The North Texas Tollway Authority, also known as the NTTA, reported that false paper tags are being used to avoid toll payments. They claim that over 16 million vehicles have traveled on the toll roads in North Texas without paying toll fees due to having false paper license plates. This has creating a total of nearly $70 million in outstanding toll fees.

Police officials hope this change will help reduce dangerous driving.

In November of 2022 a Grand Prairie police officer, Brandon Tsai, was killed in a car accident while on the job. He was in pursuit of a driver who had fraudulent plates. This incident sparked a lot of conversation in the state over the issue as it showed that the crime could have fatal consequences.

There are four main points that were brought up in the state that ultimately created the bill.

Firstly, experts found that paper tags can be easily altered or fraudulently made. They found that license holders can access the electronic tag system, add fake information, and create actual Texas paper license plates. These have been found for sale online. Using these fake tags, people can bypass toll payments. Furthermore, fake plates have been used for vehicles that have been stolen or are used when performing other criminal acts, as the false plates prevent vehicle tracing. Lastly, Texas officials have seen these plates in use on vehicles that are uninsured, either by choice or because the vehicle is unsafe for the road.

As an alternative to paper plates, Texas will now have four different metal temporary metal plates.

The four plates will include one type marking buyer provisional, one type marking dealer temporary, one type marking out-of-state buyer, and one type marking limited use plate. Each plate type will have its own color.