Missourians have spoken, and soon drivers in the state will be able to obtain a new license plate for their vehicles, celebrating Missouri's bicentennial in 2021. The new plate is the result of legislation sponsored by state Rep. Glen Kolkmeyer that was approved by the legislature and signed into law last year.
The new plate will be unveiled during a ceremony at 3:00 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, in the House Lounge, third floor of the state capitol building in Jefferson City.
The new plate was decided on by a vote of the public that followed public hearings held by the Bicentennial License Plate Advisory Committee to take input on the design. The new design, which will be available Jan. 1, 2019, will replace the current Missouri bluebird license plate. The new plate will give all Missourians an opportunity to join in the 200-year anniversary celebration for the Show-Me State in 2021.
“I want to thank the advisory committee for their work, and the public for helping to select the final design,” said Rep. Kolkmeyer, R-Odessa. “The new plates will allow us to show our appreciation for our state’s rich history, and an opportunity to play an important role in promoting our bicentennial celebration.”
The plate celebrates the bicentennial with elegant red waves at the top of the plate and blue waves at the bottom of the plate to symbolize our Missouri flag and Missouri rivers. The plate also has a greyscale state seal centered on the plate and features the words, “Missouri Bicentennial 1821,” a star, and “2021.” All text is featured in navy blue, embossed and printed on an alluring white plate.
Rep. Kolkmeyer noted the State Historical Society of Missouri and its Bicentennial Planning Committee played a vital role in developing the new license place.
According to Gary Kremer, the State Historical Society of Missouri’s executive director, the License Plate Advisory Committee worked to find a design that represented the entire state. “The waves in the bands of color represent a river,” Kremer said. “Rivers are an important symbol for Missouri, as waterways figured prominently in the state’s historic role as a gateway for American exploration and transportation.”
The selected design also had the greatest readability when tested by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
The bicentennial design will replace the current Missouri bluebird license plate. State law requires the Department of Revenue to begin a full reissuance of license plates with the new plate design in January 2019. Personalized license plates, however, will not be affected by the reissue.
The legislation sponsored by Rep. Kolkmeyer, House Bill 2380, was approved by the General Assembly during the 2016 legislative session. The bill established the Advisory Committee to develop and approve a new motor vehicle license plate design commemorating the anniversary of statehood onAug. 10, 2021. The committee held public meetings last year in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, and Poplar Bluff to gather input on the design.
Committee members included the director of the Department of Revenue, the superintendent of the Highway Patrol, the correctional enterprises administrator, the director of the Department of Transportation, the executive director of the state Historical Society of Missouri, and the respective chairpersons of both the Senate and House of Representatives Transportation Committees, Sen. Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, and Rep. Kolkmeyer.
