COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio license plate will soon have a new design for the first time in eight years.
Governor Mike DeWine and officials with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles unveiled the state’s new license plate on Thursday.
The new design features not only the rural part of the state, but also its cities. Fields and a river are pictured, with a distant view of a city in the background. Backed by this are rays of sunshine and the state's seal, followed by the quote, "Birthplace of Aviation."
"This is something that we are, in Ohio, very proud of," said DeWine, "is the innovators, the scientists, the engineers, the people who have created things in Ohio and continue to do so."
After the license plate was unveiled, comments on Twitter pointed out that the original design was incorrect. The comments addressed that the plane was facing the wrong direction.
The Ohio BMV later tweeted out a correction of the design, which is posted below.
Last year, DeWine signed a bill that created 33 specialty license plates, but the new design marks the first update Ohio has made to its standard license plate since 2013.
According to DeWine, he and First Lady Fran DeWine both played a role in the new design.
"First of all, our goal was to reflect the beauty of Ohio," DeWine said. "We also wanted the plate to represent the diversity of Ohio in the sense of the geography of Ohio."
Greg Wyatt, who works with the Department of Public Safety, is the artist behind the new design.
According to DeWine, the city does not represent one particular city in Ohio, but rather a combination of all of its cities.
The license plate will be available to Ohio drivers by the end of this year, according to a release from the Governor’s Office.
Ohio drivers hoping to switch their plates will be charged roughly $7 for the transfer, Norman said, adding that residents will have the option to keep their plate.
According to Norman, the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles issues roughly 2.1 million new license plates a year. All older plates left over will be recycled.
You can watch the announcement in the player below:
License plates from previous years:
2013: Ohio Pride design
2009: Beautiful Ohio design
2003: Sunburst design
2001: Bicentennial design
