The U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 first required its residents to register their vehicles and display license plates in 1910.

Passenger plates 1977 to present

Image	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1976 until 1980	red on white	none	ABC-123	AAA-000 to HMN-xxx
	1980 until 1986	black on white	none	ABC-123	AAA-000 to KHN-999 (Also HNA-HNE series)
	1983 until February 1986	black on white, reflective	350th Anniversary	123-ABC	000-AAA to 000-AKE	Optional issue. Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 1984 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association Automobile License Plate Collectors Association The Automobile License Plate Collectors Association is the largest such organization in the world. Founded in Rumney Depot, New Hampshire, United States, in 1953 and holding its first meeting in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, in 1954, its members have come from all 50 U.S... , the first and, to date, only time Maryland has been so honored.
	February 1986 until September 2004	black on white, reflective	none	ABC-123	NAA-001 through ZZZ-999 (1986–1992), then started again at AAA-001 through MZZ-999.	Two-year renewals started in July 1992.
	late September 2004 until February 2005	black on white, reflective	none	1AB C23	1AA A01 to 9AK Z99
	February 2005 until late 2005	black on white, reflective	www.maryland.gov	1AB C23	1AL A01 to 9CM Z99
	late 2005 until 2006	black on white, reflective	www.maryland.gov	1AB C23	1CN A01 to 9CN Z99	These plates were manufactured in New Jersey Vehicle registration plates of New Jersey The U.S. state of New Jersey first issued license plates in 1908. Plates are currently issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.All bases of all classes of plates from 1959 to present are still valid for display in New Jersey... , and therefore used New Jersey's number die Die (manufacturing) A die is a specialized tool used in manufacturing industries to cut or shape material using a press. Like molds, dies are generally customized to the item they are used to create... s, because the plate production facility at the Maryland State Prison was closed at the time due to violence.
	2006 until June 13, 2010, and expected from June 2015 onwards	black on white, reflective	www.maryland.gov	1AB C23	1CP A01 to approximately 4GD J47	Identical to 1AL A00 to 9CM Z99 series. This plate is expected to resume issuance in June 2015 at approximately 4GD J48.
	June 14, 2010 (Flag Day) expected until June 2015	War of 1812 War of 1812 The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...  200th anniversary commemorative design with U.S. flag Flag of the United States The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars alternating with rows...  and Fort McHenry Fort McHenry Fort McHenry, in Baltimore, Maryland, is a star-shaped fort best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack by the British navy in Chesapeake Bay...  silhouette. Blue on reflective white. State name in blue. "War of 1812" text under state name in red.	www.starspangled200.org	1A/B2345	1M/D0000 to 9M/D9999, then 1A/A0000 to present	A/B indicates the letters are stacked. Both letters fit in the same height as each digit. This type is issued to BOTH passenger cars AND multi-purpose vehicles (SUVs and minivans) using the same serial format.

Non-passenger types

Multi-purpose vehicles (such as minivan

Minivan

Minivan is a type of van designed for personal use. Minivans are typically either two-box or one box designs for maximum interior volume – and are taller than a sedan, hatchback, or a station wagon....

s and sport utility vehicle

Sport utility vehicle

A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...

s) have traditionally been issued separate plate types. As of June 14, 2010, however, multi-purpose vehicles are being issued the new "War of 1812" 200th anniversary commemorative design plate (see passenger table above) with the same serial format. It is anticipated that multi-purpose vehicles will again return to the 12345M6 format when standard plates return to issuance in June 2015.

Image	Type	First issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	Multi-purpose vehicle (Issued to sport utility vehicle Sport utility vehicle A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel... s and minivan Minivan Minivan is a type of van designed for personal use. Minivans are typically either two-box or one box designs for maximum interior volume – and are taller than a sedan, hatchback, or a station wagon.... s). The letter is always M.	1986	black on reflective white	none	123456M	000001M to 999999M
					M123456	M000001 to M999999
					123M456	000M001 to 479M999
		2005	black on reflective white	www.maryland.gov		480M000 to 999M999	895M000 through 909M999 were manufactured in New Jersey Vehicle registration plates of New Jersey The U.S. state of New Jersey first issued license plates in 1908. Plates are currently issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.All bases of all classes of plates from 1959 to present are still valid for display in New Jersey... , and therefore used New Jersey's number die Die (manufacturing) A die is a specialized tool used in manufacturing industries to cut or shape material using a press. Like molds, dies are generally customized to the item they are used to create... s, because the plate production facility at the Maryland State Prison was closed at the time due to violence.
		2007			12345M6	00000M1 to present
	Truck (issued to pickup truck Pickup truck A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:... s, large van Van A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or groups of people.In British English usage, it can be either specially designed or based on a saloon or sedan car, the latter type often including derivatives with open backs... s, and other such vehicles not commercially registered)		black on reflective white	www.maryland.gov	123 456 12A 345	300 001 to 999 999 000 001 to 299 999 00A 001 to present

Optional-issue plates

Image	First issued	Type	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
		Treasure the Chesapeake (original style, ceased issue in 2004)	123 ABC (passenger) ABC 12M (multi-purpose vehicle)	001 BAY through 999 BAY (passenger) 001 AAA through 899 BNM (passenger) BAY 01A through BAY 99Z (multi-purpose) AAA 01A through AEY 99W (multi-purpose)
	early 2004	Treasure the Chesapeake (new style)	12345 C/A 12345 B/Y	00001 C/B through 99999 C/B 00001 B/Y through 99999 B/Y 00001 C/A through 99999 C/A 00001 C/C through present	Same serial format used for passenger and multi-purpose vehicle registrations.
		Our Farms, Our Future	A123456	A000001 through present	Same serial format used for passenger and multi-purpose vehicle registrations.

External links

• Maryland license plates 1969-present