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Battle of the plates
Specialty plates get the brakes
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Stan Farnham wore a 100-year-old lighthouse keeper’s uniform to call on the governor. The outfit drew compliments from the Florida Highway Patrol’s top cop, attired in his own brass-bedecked uniform.
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The Florida Gators walloped the ‘Noles last year, 105,361 to 74,760.
What?
It’s the same with the Bucs, who walked over the Dolphins, 39,966 to 22,810.
Huh?
And the Marines stuck it to their rivals, racking up 40,467 to Navy’s 15,806.
Sports scores? Nope, those are the total sales tallies of some of Florida’s 109 specialty license plates. More than 39,000 of them were bought by Collier County residents in 2007, featuring everything from manatees to the Miami Heat, but a look at the top-50 hot sellers list across the state reflects changes in both headlines and national conscience.
A “Protect Our Reefs” plate skyrocketed from 53rd in sales in 2003 to the number seven spot in 2007, while the “Pass It On” plate, which benefits organ donations, moved from a lowly 103rd place in 2005 to number 89, last year. Conversely, the “Challenger/Columbia” plate dropped from a high of seventh place in 2003 to 11th in 2007.
Despite its current number-two ranking, “Protect the Panther” plate sales fell from 100,585 plates in 2003 to 82,349 in 2007. That plate was pushed out of its perennial number-one spot by UF, which raked in more than $2.7 million in plate sales last year, while third-place “Protect the Dolphins” sales remained steady at around 84,000 plates.
Florida specialty license plates came into being in 1987, following the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. Since then, the program has generated multimillions for nonprofit organizations in the state. In fiscal year 2007-08, Collier residents spent more than $930,000 on specialty license plates and across the state, specialty plate sales generated a whopping $35.5 million, with the Florida Wildlife Commission netting the lion’s share of that revenue with six different plates.
Last plate standing
But what’s the incentive to create so many special license plates?
In the case of lighthouse advocate Stan Farnham, it was a means to an end.
Farnham became president of the Florida Lighthouse Association in 2006 and revived the idea of applying for a specialty plate in order to fund preservation and protection of Florida’s 29 public historic lighthouses. He says he knew he’d have to become a tireless advocate, but he didn’t know he’d end up having to be part cheerleader, part slave driver and part engineer to accomplish the goal.
“It was an arduous two years,” admits Farnham, who credits the group’s 600 members with both creativity and persistence in the face of tremendous negativity from state lawmakers. “It’s a great, non-tax way to support worthy causes, but anyone thinking of doing this is in for a shock. I learned more about government and the legislature than I ever wanted to know.”
First, the group had to raise $74,000 for the state application fee and a scientific survey to statistically prove that at least 32,000 people would consider buying the plate. Then, they had to compile an economic impact statement and solicit support from senate and congressional representatives.
By creating a license plate design that would pass muster in committee, building a dynamic Web site and developing the required marketing plan, FLA members demonstrated resourcefulness every step of the way, according to Farnham, who made nearly a dozen trips to Tallahassee on behalf of the project. For his two-minute audience with Gov. Charlie Crist, Farnham even wore a 100-year-old lighthouse keeper’s uniform.
He was so successful in his appeal that the governor requested a $15,000 grant to help recover bricks of the collapsed St. George Lighthouse from the sea and rebuild the historic monument.
Five other plate proposals were rejected and Farnham believes the fact that the nonprofit FLA has no paid staff and does not reimburse members for any expenses is what moved the decision in favor of the organization’s request.
Farnham refers to Florida’s lighthouses, dotting both coasts from Amelia Island to the Keys to Pensacola, as a “string of pearls.” He says it was stroke of luck that FLA applied for the plate when it did. After finally approving the lighthouse bill – without the other bills lawmakers had tried to tack on to it – the legislature passed a moratorium on specialty plates.
When the lighthouse plate makes its debut, as early as December, there’ll be no new specialty plates made in Florida for at least three years.
For more information on Florida’s lighthouses, visit www.floridalighthouse.org.
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