A NEW law is set to come into force that will see a change in license plates issued.
The switch-up is part of efforts to crack down on crime and fraud.
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A new license plate system is set to come into force on July 1.
The law, which will impact drivers in Texas, will see paper license plates gradually phased out.
Under the terms of the bill, drivers must have a metal license plate instead, as per The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
And, paper tags will also be eliminated as part of the bill.
Dealers will have to issue the metal plates once a car is sold, and a set of four plates is being created as part of the measures.
But, Texas officials have warned that the four distinctive plates are only temporary.
The law is coming into force – two years after lawmakers in the state voted to eliminate paper tags.
Plates that drivers will see on the roads include those reserved for provisional buyers and out of state buyers.
This is designed to protect potential buyers who are perhaps having a test drive.
An out of state buyer plate will be valid for 60 days, and is a distinctive green color.
Meanwhile, a temporary plate is a replacement for a 30-day paper permit, as per the Texas DMV.
The new law has been hailed by dealerships in the state.
“This is going to be probably as big a change as we’ve ever had,” Jerry Smith, of the Texas Independent Auto Dealers Association, told the NBC affiliate KXAS-TV.
Drivers are required to follow a strict set of rules.
Officials revealed drivers must keep the plate’s receipt in their cars until they receive a registration sticker.
Drivers who buy a car before the end of June have a grace period of 60 days to update their plates.
And, paper tags on cars bought before July 1 will be valid until they expire.
Cops revealed that paper tags could be sold on social media for less than $100.
And, law enforcement revealed that cars with paper tags were used in crimes such as shootings and smuggling operations.
In 2022, cops uncovered that a car involved in a shooting that left three women injured in Dallas had a paper tag on it.
This made it tricky to identify a suspect as the tag was used by a dealership.
And, cop Brandon Tsai was killed in November 2022 chasing a car with a paper plate.
He died in the hospital after crashing his cop car into a light pole.
Law enforcement personnel have welcomed the crackdown.
“This is good for cops. This is good for Texans,” Daniel Scesney, a police chief in Grand Prairie, said.
He believes crime will be on the decline as a consequence of the new law that’s set to come into force.
The officer alluded to how it’s harder to replicate a metal tag compared to a paper counterpart.
The law will come into force more than two years after Texas governor Greg Abbott signed it into law.
