District of Columbia Organizational License Plate Program
It's likely that an organizational plate program was developed here because the District is enveloped by the state with the largest one, by far. With over 700 graphic and non-graphic organizational plates offered in Maryland, it was probably inevitable that some D.C. groups would request, and ultimately be issued, their own distinctive plates. To qualify for them, a non-profit organization must submit written commitments from at least 25 Washington motorists to the effect that they would purchase plates of a particular design if they were made available.
In the Maryland tradition, all D.C. organizational plates have a logo on the left side followed by a four-digit number that is immediately preceded by a stacked three-letter code. For many years registration numbers began at 0001, although on the earliest FOP plates leading zeros were not used. However, with types introduced beginning around 2010, the lowest number was changed to 1000 (or possibly 1001). This change is evident in St. John's College and Univ. of Michigan plates.
Organizational plates may only be purchased by members of participating organizations, which is to say they are not available to the general public. Although each pair costs $100 initially, there is no renewal surcharge. Replacement plates cost $25 each. Individuals whose membership in an organization ends must promptly surrender their plates to the DMV. Only sequentially-assigned numbers are available: they cannot be personalized. They may be displayed on vehicles that would otherwise qualify for private passenger car plates: autos, sport-utility vehicles, light trucks, and vans.
Throughout this page, "type" refers to the organization promoted by the plate whereas "variety" refers to the appearance of the plate based upon characteristics such as colors, fonts, and the manner in which the registration number is displayed. All of the images provided in the first section, where they are grouped by variety, are shown again in the lower portion grouped by type. Click here if you'd like to see a list of all military service-related plates issued in Washington, D.C., some of which are not considered organizational plates and therefore do not appear on this page. Foreign Organization plates, which some may consider an organizational type, are discussed here on our non-passenger plates page.
Program History and Plate Varieties
When organizational plates first became available is unknown, but based upon their characteristics we believe that some of them may have been made and issued as early as the mid-1990s. The earliest sticker observed on an organizational plate is the white-on-blue "97," which in most cases was issued during 1996. If organizational plates were available earlier than 1996, it likely was not much earlier. The sole exception is Disabled American Veteran, which was created in the mid-1970s, long before other organizational plates were offered. This type has been rolled into the organizational plate program by the DMV.
The appearance of standard components of organizational plates has varied widely over the years. Here is how we summarize the varieties, in what we believe is their chronological order of use. Note, however, that because so few examples of organizational plates have been documented we do not have nearly enough evidence to draw conclusions as to the exact order and timing of issuance of the types and varieties. This is especially true with respect to varieties of blue-on-white plates.
Embossed Black-on-White Plates
We believe that black-on-white organizational plates characterized by the city name in an italic font are examples of the earliest issues and were introduced in the mid-1990s. Types observed in this format are D.C. Firefighters Local 36 and N.C. A&T State Univ. Alumni, so they may be the first two types. Motifs of these plates are believed to have been printed in Maryland at the print shop where graphics for that state's hundreds of organizational plates were applied to license plate blanks, and it is likely because the primary color on Maryland plates being made at the time was black that the black-on-white color scheme, not used on D.C. plates since 1920, was reintroduced with the first organizational plates. These two designs stand out from all other (presumably later) D.C. organizational plates in that the graphic is unusually large.
Because these plates were embossed with D.C. dies, we believe that the printed blanks were sent to Lorton Correctional Facility, where D.C. plates were made until mid-2001, for embossing and finishing, although this would have necessitated the use of an ink color otherwise not known to have been in use at Lorton at the time. Alternatively, D.C. dies could have been sent to the Maryland plate shop if its presses could accept them, but this seems unlikely.
The first style of District of Columbia Lodge/Fraternal Order of Police plate is within a distinct category because although it is similar to plates described immediately below, the font used for the city name differs slightly, the organization name is presented in upper and lower case letters, the graphic is smaller, and leading zeroes are not used. No other types have been observed with this combination of characteristics. Whether this plate was introduced before, after, or simultaneously with plates described in the next section is unknown.
Types with an embossed, black-on-white number and the city name displayed in a blocky, heretofore unseen sans serif font are likely almost as old as the italic-font types. Those seen in this format are Delta Sigma Theta, both versions of the Prince Hall Family issue (Masonic and Order of the Eastern Star), and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. Note that the three-letter type prefix is presented in an unusual but consistent font on the N.C. A&T State Univ. Alumni above and the Delta Sigma Theta plate, suggesting that they may have been made at about the same time despite the different fonts used for Washington, D.C.
Blue-on-White Plates
There are almost as many varieties of blue-on-white plates are there are documented examples of them. Unfortunately, so few plates in this color scheme have been photographed that it is impossible to determine in which order the varieties were introduced.
These five flat blue-on-white plates share some characteristics, but none are the same. Each uses a different font for the city and organization names. The Spirit of Faith Christian Center plate is old enough that it has SEE WINDOW STICKER stickers, whereas the other four have this feature graphically displayed. The National Assn. of Black Scuba Divers plate is the most similar to regular auto plates, with the same font used for the city name and the red rules that are absent on the other examples. The combination of characteristics of the D.C. Firefighters Local 36 plate suggests that it may have been made late in the summer of 2002, although the registration number font appears more recent than that. The city name font on the District of Columbia Lodge/Fraternal Order of Police plate is the same as on the four black-on-white plates pictured above, and the font used for the three-letter type code on the Bad Boys Club and Black Scuba Divers plates appears to be the same.
Flat Black-on-White Plates
It may be somewhat misleading to segregate recent organizational plates by their colors, thereby suggesting that flat-format blue plates were introduced prior to flat-format black plates, because we simply don't know if this is true. Although as of March 2012 it is clear that no optional plates with blue printing of which we have images were introduced within the past few years whereas we know that the black-on-white Univ. of Michigan, St. John's College, and Porsche Club of America plates more recently made their debuts, we don't know whether some of the earlier flat plates with black printing were issued prior to blue-on-white plates of the same manufacturing variety. It would not be surprising to learn, for example, that Morehouse College, Alpha Kappa Alpha, and Kappa Alpha Psi plates were made available before the National Assn. of Black Scuba Divers issue. Furthermore, as to the standard organizational plate design, the Nov. 2009 application for participation in this program indicates that "the foreground (letters and numbers) is black or blue," indicating that organizations may be given a choice of colors. Nevertheless, without data about when these types were introduced, grouping them by their colors seems like a reasonable way to approximate their period of issuance. In general we believe that most flat black-on-white plates were first made available after blue-on-white plates.
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Plate Types: Participating Organizations
We have classified types issued or documented by the D.C. DMV on its Web site as having been made available into four categories. Comments about each type are presented below the table, and fiscal 2011 issuance statistics cited may be found here.
Colleges and Universities |
Fraternities and Sororities |
Public Service-Related Orgs. |
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Other Organizations |
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Colleges and Universities
Florida A&M University. A few Florida A&M plates have been observed in use, one being no. FAM 0201 seen in the fall of 2009, but only no. 0062 has been photographed. A single example was issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011, and although during that year there may have been additional examples in use that were issued during previous years, the type introduction date is unknown. Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University is a land-grant institution founded in 1890. It is located Tallahassee.
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George Washington University. The introduction date of this type is unknown. Number 0016, observed in mid-December 2015, is the first to have been photographed by a DCplates.net contributor. Two examples were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011, although during that year there may have been additional examples in use that were issued during previous years. George Washington University was the first educational institution located within Washington, D.C. to participate in the organizational plate program. It was created in 1821 through an Act of Congress.
University of Michigan. Although the introduction date of this type is unknown, that eight examples were issued during the city government's 2011 fiscal year suggests that it was introduced during that period, between Oct. 1, 2010, and Sept. 30, 2011. That it is one of the most recent types is evident in the numbering format: registration numbers appear to have begun at 1000 or 1001, and the flat black-on-white base is almost certainly the only variety issued as of this March 2012 writing. Numbers 1002 and 1003 have been observed. The University of Michigan was founded in 1817 (about 20 years before the Michigan Territory became a state), and its flagship campus is located in Ann Arbor.
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Mississippi State University. As of late 2016 this is one of the most recent organizational plates to be introduced.
Morehouse College Alumni Assn. The introduction date of this type is unknown, but it probably was first offered around 2008. Three have been photographed, numbers 0003, 0018, and 0035, and all share the same characteristics as the example shown, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. This type is unique in that the three-letter prefix to the registration number is presented in italics. A single example was issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011, although during that year there were likely several others in use that were issued during previous years. Morehouse College was established as Augusta Institute, in Augusta, Ga., in 1867. Twelve years later it was moved to Atlanta, its present location, and today it is the the only all male historically black institution of higher learning in the United States.
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North Carolina A&T State Univ. Alumni. Although its characteristics suggest that it is one of the earliest D.C. organizational plates and was probably first made available in the mid-1990s, the exact introduction date of N.C. A&T plates is unknown. Two have been photographed, numbers 0019, and 0035, and they share the same characteristics, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. Two examples were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is a land-grant institution founded in 1891. It is located in Greensboro, N.C., and is the largest publicly funded historically black college in North Carolina.
St. John's College. The introduction date of this type is unknown and only a single example, no. 1001, has been observed and photographed by a DCplates.net contributor. Only one plate was issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. That it is one of the most recent types is evident in the numbering format: registration numbers appear to have begun at 1000 or 1001, and the flat black-on-white base is almost certainly the only variety issued as of this March 2012 writing.
St John's College was chartered in 1784, and is located on two campuses: one in Annapolis, Md., the other in Santa Fe, N.M. It has no departments and no majors, and textbooks and class lectures are not used. All students follow the same "great books" curriculum whereby they study the classics of various disciplines and meet with members of the faculty and other students to discuss and explore the books being read. Its motto, which appears on its seal in Latin, translates to "I make free adults out of children by means of books and a balance."
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Fraternities and Sororities
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Two plates of this type have been photographed, number 0003 and the unexpectedly high 0205, and both share the same characteristics as the example shown, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. If this is the case, then the type was introduced after late 2002, when SEE WINDOW STICKER began to be printed on regular plates, and in fact we believe it is considerably newer than that, perhaps having debuted around 2008. Two examples were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. Note that the design features green rules whereas on standard D.C. plates they appear in red. Alpha Kappa Alpha is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African-American college women. It was founded at Howard University, in Washington, on January 15, 1908, and the plate may have been established in conjunction with its centennial celebration.
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Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. The introduction date of this type is unknown, and only the example pictured has been observed in use. Four pairs were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011, although during that year there may have been additional examples in use that were issued during previous years. Alpha Phi Alpha is the first inter-collegiate black Greek-lettered fraternity. It was founded at Cornell University on December 4, 1906, and chapters were established at Howard University and Virginia Union University, two prominent historically black institutions, in 1907.
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Although the introduction date of this type is unknown, a visible "98" sticker on one example indicates that it was issued during 1997, making it one of the earliest D.C. organizational plates. Four have been photographed, numbers 0027, 0064, 0065, and 0099, and all share the same characteristics as the example shown, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. A single pair was issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. Delta Sigma Theta was founded at Howard University on January 13, 1913, and today is the largest African-American Greek-lettered sorority in the world.
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Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. Two examples of this type have been photographed, numbers 0007 and 0021, and both have the same characteristics, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. It features all black printing, including the rules uncharacteristic for organizational plates, and a three-letter type prefix that is shown in a larger format than on any other D.C. plate. The introduction date of this type is unknown. Four examples were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. Kappa Alpha Psi is a Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African-American membership. It was founded on January 5, 1911, at Indiana University - Bloomington. Its Xi Chapter was chartered at Howard University in 1920.
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. Three plates of this type have been photographed, numbers 0011, 0027, and 0042, and all share the same characteristics as the example shown, suggesting that there has been only a single variety. Although its introduction date is unknown, a visible "97" sticker on one Omega Psi Phi plate indicates that it was issued during 1996, making it among the earliest D.C. organizational plates. Two pairs were issued during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2011. Omega Psi Phi was founded at Howard University on November 17, 1911, making it the first predominantly African-American fraternity to be founded at a historically black university. In 1927, it created an annual week-long observance that has evolved into today's Black History Month.
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Public Service-Related Organizations
District of Columbia Lodge/Fraternal Order of Police. More examples of this type have been observed than any other, and three distinct varieties have been identified. Numbers 323, 387, 399, 454, 549, and 590 are of the embossed black-on-white style; number 0765 shares this color scheme but is of the flat variety and includes a leading zero to the number; and numbers 1002, 1005, 2907, and 5001 are of the flat blue-on-white variety. Why leading zeros are not included on the first style, and when the type was first made available, is unknown. Also a mystery are the high numbers seen, although they may have been specially made for officers with their badge number or some other significant combination. Thirty sets were issued during the 2011 fiscal year, more than any other organizational plate.
Jerrard F. Young District of Columbia Lodge #1 is one of the largest Fraternal Order of Police lodges in the U.S., with 10,000 members from more than 110 District and Federal agencies. It was chartered in 1966 and is named in memory of its first member killed in the line of duty.
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D.C. Firefighters Local 36. This type appears to be second only to the FOP in terms of the number in circulation. We have been provided with images of seven examples, with numbers 0009, 0043, 0046, 0126, and 0190 being of the embossed black-on-white variety, and numbers 2544 and 2700 in the flat blue-on-white style. As with FOP plates, the high numbers are unexpected and unexplained. When Firefighters Local 36 plates were introduced is unknown, but the stickers on number 0009 indicate that it was already in use by late 2000. In fact, we believe this is one of the first types, and that it may have made its debut as early as the mid-1990s. During fiscal 2011, 25 pairs were issued, again second only to the FOP issue.
Washington DC Fire Fighters Association Local 36 was formed in August 1913, and is a member organization of the International Association of Firefighters AFL-CIO. It represents more than 1,800 professional men and women that protect citizens, workers and visitors in the Nation's Capital. Its members respond to about 150,000 calls annually.
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Bad Boys Club. When this type was introduced is unknown. Two examples have been observed, numbers 0001 and 0017, and a single pair was issued during fiscal year 2011. Bad Boys Club America, Inc., is located on Webster St. NW in Washington. Although we know little about it, it is classified by Dun & Bradstreet in its "membership sports and recreation clubs, fitness and recreation sports centers" category, and the logo on the license plate includes the legend Exclusively for Law Enforcement Professionals.
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Blue Knights. No examples of this type have been observed or photographed by DCplates.net contributors, so we know nothing about them. None were issued during fiscal 2011 according to DMV statistics. As for the organization, the Blue Knights International Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club is a fraternal group comprised of active and retired law enforcement men and women that enjoy riding motorcycles. It was founded in Bangor, Maine in 1974, and as of early 2012 had about 20,000 members in 635 chapters located in 24 nations.
Disabled American Veteran. Although this type was introduced long before the organizational plate program existed, the DMV now considers this once separate non-passenger plate and registration type an organizational plate, so we have also classified it this way, as well. There actually are two types: regular and handicapped. Although we have grouped them for presentation purposes, it is possible that regular plates, with simply a DAV prefix, are representative of a true organizational plate type whereas DV-prefix plates issued for handicapped individuals may in fact not be an organizational plate related to Disabled American Veterans, but rather just a standard non-passenger type that happens to have DISABLED AMERICAN VETERAN displayed across the bottom. This would explain the presence of an otherwise somewhat mysterious type labeled "Disabled Veteran" in fiscal 2011 new registration statistics.
The earliest known regular plates are of the 1974 (Bicentennial) base, whereas the oldest observed examples of the handicapped variety are made on the 1991 (Celebrate & Discover) base. The exact introduction year for each type is unknown. Nine pairs of the standard format DAV plate were issued in fiscal 2011, and if we're reading the aforementioned statistics correctly, eight sets of handicapped veteran plates were issued.
Disabled American Veterans is an independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to building better lives for America's disabled veterans and their families. Although based in Cold Spring, Kentucky (near Cincinnati, Ohio), its National Service and Legislative Headquarters is in Washington. It was founded by World War I veterans in 1920, and presently has approximately 1.2 million members.
Veterans of Foreign Wars. Until April 2014 this was one of the few organizational plate types of which no examples had been observed by DCplates.net contributors. Despite the scarcity of the design, however, characteristics of plate no. 0004 and registration data indicating that one pair was issued during fiscal year 2011 suggest that it was introduced between Jan. 2010 and Sept. 2011. As for the organization, the VFW evolved from local groups founded in 1899 following the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection. It has grown to a current membership of 2.1 million individuals and exists to foster camaraderie among U.S. veterans of overseas conflicts; to serve veterans, their communities, and the military; and to advocate on behalf of all veterans. Its headquarters is located in Kansas City, Missouri.
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Prince Hall Masonic Family. This appears to be one of the oldest organizational plate types, and although when it was first made available is unknown, it likely was in the mid-to-late 1990s. Two plates of which we have a photograph have an exp. 1998 sticker, indicating issuance in 1997. Nine examples have been observed, numbers 0001, 0051, 0063, 0067, 0076, 0085, 0149, 0278, and 0302, all in the same embossed black-on-white format of the example pictured. A single set was issued during fiscal year 2011.
The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia occupies the Prince Hall Masonic Temple on U Street NW in Washington, which was built in 1922 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. It is named for Prince Hall (c.1735-Dec. 7, 1807), an abolitionist and leader of the free black community in Boston. He worked to gain enslaved and free African-Americans throughout New England a place in society, including in education, the military, and Freemasonry, and is considered the founder of "Black Freemasonry" in the United States. Lodges across the country bear his name.
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Order of the Eastern Star/Prince Hall Family. Curiously, this type has never been included on the list of available types published on the DMV's Web site except for that it was listed as "White Stars," although this refrence was removed around the beginning of 2016. Photographs of numbers 0021, 0033, 0050, and 0062 have been taken, and although none are included on the list of plates sold during fiscal year 2011, presumably they're still available. Despite the different three-letter type prefix than Prince Hall Masonic Family plates, Order of the Eastern Star may not be listed by the DMV because it is an affiliate of the Prince Hall Masons. This type is believed to date from the mid-to-late 1990s, and may have been introduced simultaneously with Prince Hall Masonic Family.
The Order of the Eastern Star is a fraternal organization founded in 1850 by Boston lawyer and educator Rob Morris. It is affiliated with Freemasonry in that all of its male members must be Master Masons, and women must have specific relationships with Masons. In December 1874, Queen Esther Chapter No. 1 became the first Prince Hall Affiliate chapter upon its establishment in Washington by Thornton Andrew Jackson. The International Temple of the Order of the Eastern Star, its headquarters, is located near Dupont Circle in Washington.
National Association of Black Scuba Divers. Three examples of this type, numbers 0003, 0004, and 0014, have been observed in use, all of which are of the same variety as the example pictured. (A photo of the vehicle on which this plate is displayed appears above.) The introduction date is unknown, and one pair was issued during fiscal year 2011. The National Association of Black Scuba Divers was established in 1991 to foster camaraderie among African-American divers and to address unique problems and concerns of the African-American Community. It is headquartered in Washington, and membership is open to all regardless of race, color, gender, handicap, or diving agency affiliation, according to its Web site. The organization has more than 2,000 members.
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Porsche Club of America. Although the introduction date of this type is unknown, that eight examples were issued during the 2011 fiscal year suggests that it was introduced during that period. If this is true, we're surprised that registration numbers don't begin at 1000 or 1001, as is the case with other types introduced in that year. Numbers PCA 0005and PCA 0007, the only examples observed, are of the flat black-on-white variety. The Porsche Club of America was founded in Washington 1955 by Bill Sholar, a commercial artist whose first Porsche was a 1953 356 Coupe. The organization has since grown to 139 regions throughout the U.S. and Canada that serve more than 100,000 members, making it the largest single marque club in the world. Washington and surrounding portions of Maryland and Virginia are served by the Potomac Region.
Spirit of Faith Christian Center. Only a single example of this type has been observed and photographed, and that it has SEE WINDOW STICKER stickers indicates that it was already in use by mid-2002. Exactly when the type was first made available is unknown. It is not included on the list of organizational plate types of which examples were issued during fiscal year 2011. Spirit of Faith Christian Center has served the spiritual needs of the Washington community since its founding in October 1993 by Dr. Michael A. Freeman, a fourth generation pastor. The church is headquartered in Temple Hills, Md., close to the D.C. border.
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Washington Nationals. During 2013 the Washington Nationals baseball club organized efforts in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia to have optional license plates with the team's logo and name authorized and issued in each place. The D.C. effort was the first to be successful when in mid-2013 the plates were introduced. Specifically, a set is known to have been purchased by a Nats fan on Sat., June 8, and it is believed that this was soon after the introduction date. By late 2013 the Maryland and Virginia plates were still in the works, with the Virginia version by then having received the minimum 450 orders for the plates to be made and issued. Todays Nationals baseball team was created in 1969 as the Montreal Expos. The team was moved to D.C. and its name changed to the Washington Nationals between the 2004 and 2005 Major League Baseball seasons.
Children First Foundation. This Florida-based organization has since 2000 successfully spearheaded efforts in slightly more than half of the states as well as D.C. to have optional license plates with a "Choose Life" theme authorized and issued. The D.C. version was introduced on Oct. 23, 2013.
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Univ. of Michigan |
Morehouse College Alumni Assn. |
N.C. A&T State University |
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St. John's College |
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority |
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority |
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Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity |
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity |
D.C. Lodge/Fraternal Order of Police |
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D.C. Lodge/Fraternal Order of Police |
D.C. Firefighters Local 36 |
D.C. Firefighters Local 36 |
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Bad Boys Club America |
Nat'l Assn. of Black Scuba Divers |
Order of the Eastern Star/Prince Hall Family |
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Prince Hall Masonic Family |
Spirit of Faith Christian Center |
Porsche Club of America |
Program Eligibility and Type Authorization
Unlike in most states with organizational plate programs, the minimum quantity of purchase commitments required for a plate to be approved, manufactured, and issued in D.C., is very low. Because only 25 vehicle owners must express an interest in a proposed design, and because apparently even that pre-qualification expressed interest does not require that the interested parties actually buy a set of the plates if they are ultimately made available, there are many organizational plates of which very few examples have ever been sold.
To participate in the program an organization must be a not-for-profit corporation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Interested organizations must provide a $100 program application fee, copies of its charter or articles of incorporation and proof of its not-for-profit status, and signatures of at least 25 members "attesting to their intent to display the proposed tag." According to a June 2009 memo from the city government's chief financial office to then Council chairman Vincent Gray on the subject of proposed special license plates for military veterans, "manufacturing of a specialty plate costs an average of $6.63 to the DMV, and there is a fixed computer programming cost of $3,000 for a new type of specialty plate."
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This page last updated on December 31, 2017 |
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