Listen Now: Vanity Plates

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Maine is cleaning up its act, starting with license plates. I’m Brian Banmiller on Business.

In 2015 the state of Maine dropped its review process for what people could put on license plates. That’s when, as the Secretary of State put it, “Maine became the wild, wild west of vanity license plates.” That includes salty language, references to anatomy, sex acts and insults. One person has a license plate with the simple message of f-u, except of course it’s spelled out. Now the state has a new law banning certain language from license plates, and that means its recall time. State officials say there are at least 400 plates in Maine subject to recall. And the state is now working on making rules for what you can put on your plate that doesn’t step on anyone’s first amendment rights. The Secretary of State says the process could take between two and four months and will include public comment. She says it’s a fine line between free speech rights and offending people. Basically, if you can’t say it on the news, you can’t put it on your plate. Brian Banmiller, CBS News.

About Brian

CBS News Radio national business journalist Brian Banmiller has spent more than 40 years in the news industry, covering business, politics and the economy on television, radio and in print. Currently, his “Banmiller on Business” reports are delivered to an audience of millions nationwide.