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Legislator wants to allow corporate ads on license plates

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posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 07:40 AM
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This license plate brought to you by …



SPRINGFIELD — — Illinois residents are used to seeing license plates supporting everything from their favorite school to the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks. But one lawmaker thinks the state might be able to make some money by converting some plates into miniature billboards.

Legislation introduced by a Chicago lawmaker this week would create corporate sponsorship plates that motorists could buy at a discount.

"This gives us a chance to raise revenue without raising taxes," said state Sen. John Mulroe, D-Chicago. "We've got to think outside the box these days."


Is everything going to be a state-sponsored walking billboard before we know it? Should companies be able to advertise on license plates?


Mulroe said the proposal is a "win-win situation for everyone" because it would cost the state nothing to make the corporate plates, cut fees for drivers and bring in much-needed revenue to a state looking for ways to shore up its finances.


If it costs the state nothing to make the plates, should it cost the taxpayer anything to receive them? If they're looking for ways to shore up their finances, let's start with cutting their salaries, and cutting their staff. If the state is as mismanaged as most businesses are, there's a heck of a lot that can be done to "shore up" its finances.

Forcing people to promote a product or service? What if I don't want coca cola on my license plate because they sell poisonous pesticice-beverages in India?

Any thoughts on this?



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 07:47 AM
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Shouldn't drivers be concentrating on the roads - not tiny advertisements on license plates?



If it costs the state nothing to make the plates, should it cost the taxpayer anything to receive them?


Ofcourse it will.



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 07:50 AM
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Mmm Coca-Cola....

Anyways the article indicates you *could* buy the plates at a discounted price. So A) it's optional and B) it would be saving money for the poor and middle class.

I like it.



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 07:52 AM
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This is kind of like utilizing your vehicle to market for another company. A friend of mine got his car "wrapped" with a local company's logo, slogan, and contact info and literally drives around in it and gets paid great money to do so. Its his car, so they pay him directly for the mobile marketing. Id be all for advertisements on my license plate if the company was contributing something to me. Otherwise i hope this thing gets shot down. haha



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 08:02 AM
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Corporations are so greedy. Now they want to slap their crappy logos on license plates?

Shouldn't you be paying attention to the road not a cars license plate?

I don't think this should be allowed. They will just find ways to charge the people more and they will benefit from it and nothing more.

I live in Florida and Florida apparently has more vanity plates than any other state. When you go to the DMV here it's insane the choices of plates you can get. I remember when all you could get was the state, now they have everything and anything. I won't lie I want the shuttle one this year
but there are some that make you scratch your head as to how the funding was done to produce those and if that many people really use it.



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 08:03 AM
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Soon enough, our daily highway commute will end up looking like the Daytona 500. Shake and Bake Ricky!! I would like the Copenhagen vehicle wrap for my car please.


States are strapped for cash with no options and a federal govt that wants to push more costs down the state's throat. ie. Obamacare.... Time to sell sponsorship rights to the all state capital buildings too. The "Geico" rotunda, the "Cracker Barrel" conference room and I might as well include the GE White House while I'm at it.



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 08:05 AM
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If they had on opt in system it might be beneficial.

If drivers/taxpayers are given the option to purchase these advertisement plates for a deep discounted price (If they end up actually passing the savings on) then they could pull in profit while saving drjvers hard earned money. I could see people caring less if they recieve a cut in cost and the option of having them or not.

That would be a win/win scenario.

Two years ago my plate fees for one year was around $30.00. It is $60.00 this year for a one year renewal. If they would cut it down to $15.00 I would gladly advertise viagra or hotwings, etc.

Already people are buying plates and paying extra to provide some companies with free advertisement for the SPCA, Wildlife Fund, and many more.

Atleast this way, you could recieve a cut in cost.

Edited to add -

They could have gone this route : www.ajc.com...

edit on 2/11/2011 by Kangaruex4Ewe because: (no reason given)

edit on 2/11/2011 by Kangaruex4Ewe because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 08:35 AM
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reply to post by againuntodust
 


If states and municipalities would just quit donning out tax abatements as a means to attract businesses to their locals, which is nothing more than a race to the bottom, then they might not need to create new methods of retrieving this missing revenue in the first place.

By continuing to allow this process of offering tax breaks to corporations based on their willingness to relocate within certain localities, we are pitting city against city and state against state until we reach the point that corporations operate tax free while state and city budgets drown in red ink.

It is not my intention to steer this thread off topic, but I believe this to be one of the primary causes of the current shortfalls being experienced by cities and states across this nation. IMO, it should be illegal for any city, county and/or state to lower their established tax rate as a means of attracting new business.

I guess that getting to utilize the infrastructure including water, sewer, electricity, roads & highways, police & fire protection, etc... that city and state tax dollars pay for isn't enough for these companies, they would like to get a little corporate vehicular advertising thrown in as well for their tax dollars. Give me a break!
edit on 11-2-2011 by Flatfish because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 11 2011 @ 04:08 PM
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Originally posted by jjkenobi
Mmm Coca-Cola....

Anyways the article indicates you *could* buy the plates at a discounted price. So A) it's optional and B) it would be saving money for the poor and middle class.

I like it.


Bingo! And if managed cleverly, it could generate both revenue and savings for legitimate charities and organizations, were the State to have an affiliate program. I'm pretty sure I've seen the 'pink ribbon' showing you support cancer research on plates in NY/NJ.

We all know the speaker did a serious slip of the tongue; those license plates and everything else the State touches costs them (you, their taxpayers) money. It simply wouldn't cost a fortune in tooling to have advertisement emblazoned on the plate.



posted on Jun, 13 2011 @ 05:30 PM
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Although I am a bit tired of our 'advertising culture' and how you can't have your eyes opened for 2 seconds without seeing an ad for something, I actually do approve of this as long as citizens have a say so.

As in, they can opt in for it. It would be really unfair to force citizens to advertise a company they may be morally opposed to or even be competition for their own business or employer.

But, I am not against it. Government revenue pretty much comes in the form of either taxes or fines. So if the government actually has a way to increase revenue voluntarily and without raising taxes, forcing police quotas for tickets, or nickle and diming citizens over permits, then I could go for this.

Honestly, I think the government needs to do MORE to increase their revenue with things like this.



posted on Jun, 13 2011 @ 07:07 PM
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reply to post by againuntodust
 


Let me ask you, as a citizen of the United States.

If you owned a business, would you want to be able to advertise your business?

That being said, it's not mandatory to get these advertisements on your license plate. If you really feel so hard about it, don't get it.
edit on 13-6-2011 by BiGGz because: (no reason given)



posted on Jun, 14 2011 @ 01:40 AM
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Unless it covers my expenses of operating my car, I frankly don't really want it on my car. If I'm going to be rolling around like NASCAR, then I better be sponsored like one of its drivers.



posted on Jun, 14 2011 @ 01:47 AM
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Dibs on ENRON!



posted on Jun, 14 2011 @ 05:28 PM
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Originally posted by BiGGz
reply to post by againuntodust
 


Let me ask you, as a citizen of the United States.

If you owned a business, would you want to be able to advertise your business?

That being said, it's not mandatory to get these advertisements on your license plate. If you really feel so hard about it, don't get it.
edit on 13-6-2011 by BiGGz because: (no reason given)


Yes I would want to advertise and there are plenty of outlets to do so. I'm not sure I want to be a driving advertisement for any random company the state has been lobbied by or chooses, and if I were to choose to help a company advertise, I'd want direct compensation from said company - and I'd do a thorough investigation into their political contributions among other things that they influence (offshore workers, chemicals used in their product, compensation of their employees, etc). I personally feel there are other ways for the state to better handle their finances, aside from generating more revenue, and definitely without leaning towards oligarchy by tying corporations and their profit-motives into government, which I am vehemently opposed to.



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