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This website publishes administrative rules on their effective dates, as designated by the adopting state agencies, colleges, and universities.

Chapter 4501-27 | License Plates

 
 
 
Rule
Rule 4501-27-01 | License plate specifications.
 

(A) This rule contains the specifications for the manufacture of license plates for the state of Ohio.

(B) In accordance with section 4503.22 of the Revised Code, the director of public safety shall designate all of the following:

(1) The substrate material for the license plate which shall be galvanized steel as specified in paragraph (D) of this rule or aluminum as specified in paragraph (E) of this rule;

(2) The colors and design of the retroreflective multi-year sheeting which shall constitute the background colors and design of the license plate; and,

(3) The colors and design of the characters that form the distinctive numbers and letters for the license plate.

(C) The finished license plate shall contain any logo, inscription, or design feature prescribed by law and may contain any logo, inscription, or other design feature as designated by the director.

(D) If the director designates galvanized steel as the substrate, it shall have satisfactory strength while retaining flatness after embossing. It shall not crack or break when embossed with standard embossing dies used to manufacture license plates. The galvanized steel shall conform to ASTM A653, "Standard Specification for Steel Sheet, Zinc-Coated (Galvanized) or Zinc-Iron Alloy-Coated (Galvannealed) by the Hot-Dip Process," approved November 1, 2010 (ASTM A653/A653M-10); or approved June 1, 2007 (ASTM A653/A653M-07); or approved May 1, 2004 (ASTM A653/A653M-04a); or approved December 10, 1998 (ASTM A653/A653M-98a), and shall have a G-90 coating designation to retard corrosion and requiring no phosphate coating. The thickness of the galvanized steel shall be nineteen one-thousandths inch plus or minus three one-thousandths inch continuous galvanized, zinc chromated. The supplier of the steel shall warrant the substrate of the license plate for a minimum of four years. At the director's discretion, the director may obtain a certification from an independent testing facility stating whether or not the galvanized steel supplied by the manufacturer meets the standards as specified in this rule. ASTM standards are available from the "American Society for Testing and Materials, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania 19428, (610) 832-9500, web site: http://www.astm.org. ASTM standards incorporated by reference in this rule may be viewed at the "Ohio Department of Public Safety, Office of Legal Services, 1970 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43223."

(E) If the director designates aluminum as the substrate, it shall have satisfactory strength while retaining flatness after embossing. It shall not crack or break when embossed with standard embossing dies used to manufacture license plates. The aluminum shall conform to ASTM B209, "Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum Alloy Sheet Plate," approved November 1, 2010 and ASTM B449, "Standard Specification for Chromates on Aluminum," approved June 1, 2010, and free of any powdery residue, oil, or other foreign material which may affect adhesion of reflective sheeting. The substrate aluminum shall have a chrome-free, environmentally friendly conversion coating. The thickness of the aluminum shall be between twenty-two one-thousandths inch and thirty-two one-thousandths inch plus or minus one one-thousandths. The supplier of the aluminum shall warrant the substrate of the license plate for a minimum of four years. At the director's discretion, the director may obtain a certification from an independent testing facility stating whether or not the aluminum supplied by the manufacturer meets the standards as specified in this rule. ASTM standards are available from the "American Society for Testing and Materials, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania 19428, (610) 832-9500, web site: http://www.astm.org. ASTM standards incorporated by reference in this rule may be viewed at the "Ohio Department of Public Safety, Office of Legal Services, 1970 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43223."

(F) The retroreflective sheeting shall have sufficient adherence to the substrate to remain firmly attached during the license plate manufacturing process and for a minimum service life of four years. The supplier of the sheeting shall warrant the sheeting for a minimum of four years. At the director's discretion, the director may require the manufacturer to provide a certification from an independent testing facility stating that the sheeting meets the standards as specified in this rule.

(G) The photometric retroreflective performance values of the white sheeting, when new, shall be no less than fifty as described below:

Observation angleIncidence angle
0.2-430
50 (minimum) 20 (minimum)

(Photometric retroreflective performance values are expressed as minimum candlepower/foot-candle/square foot of retroreflective license plate sheeting.)

Measurements shall be computed in accordance with standard photometric procedure as set forth in federal specification LS 300 C, "Sheeting and Tape, Reflective: Non-Exposed Lens," dated July 12, 1974, and as incorporated in ASTM D4956, "Standard Specification for Retroreflective sheeting for Traffic Control," approved September 10, 1995, and shall be expressed as candlepower/foot-candle/square foot. ASTM standards are available from the "American Society for Testing and Materials, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania 19428, (610) 832-9500, web site: http://www.astm.org. ASTM standards incorporated by reference in this rule may be viewed at the "Ohio Department of Public Safety, Office of Legal Services, 1970 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43223."The retroreflective sheeting shall retain a minimum photometric retroreflective performance value of at least twenty-five candlepower/foot-candle/square foot rating at the end of four years under normal use and conditions on a passenger vehicle. In no case shall the minimum test using clean rear license plates be less than twenty-five candlepower/foot-candle/square foot.

(H) Except as otherwise provided in this rule, the dimensions of the license plate shall be twelve inches in width and six inches in height. The plate shall have bolt holes blanked with center-to-center spacing of seven inches, centered horizontally, and four and three-quarters inches, centered vertically.

(I) The dimensions of license plates for motorcycles, motorized bicycles, and any all-purpose vehicles required by statute to display a license plate shall be seven inches in width and four inches in height. The plate shall have bolt holes blanked with center-to-center spacing of five and three-fourths inches, centered horizontally, and two and three-fourths inches, centered vertically.

(J) If it is technologically practical to do so, the license plate may contain graphic symbols showing the date of expiration and the county of registration name or number in lieu of a validation sticker or county identification sticker.

Last updated October 23, 2023 at 11:45 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4503.22
Amplifies: 4503.22
Five Year Review Date: 11/1/2026
Prior Effective Dates: 6/13/1996, 1/15/2004
Rule 4501-27-02 | License plate service life specifications.
 

(A) A person who is the owner or operator of a motor vehicle may continue to display a license plate issued to that vehicle under sections 4503.19 and 4503.191 of the Revised Code until the license plate is lost, mutilated, or destroyed; becomes illegible; loses its reflectivity; or is declared obsolete under this rule, provided that the plate also displays a current and valid validation sticker and county identification sticker.

(B) No person who is the owner or operator of a motor vehicle shall display a license plate issued to a vehicle under sections 4503.19 and 4503.191 of the Revised Code if the license plate is mutilated or destroyed, becomes illegible, loses its reflectivity, or is declared obsolete under this rule.

(C) As used in this rule:

(1) "Becomes illegible" means that any feature of the license plate is difficult or impossible to read from a reasonable distance because the feature is damaged, deteriorated, faded, or obscured in any significant way;

(2) "Loses its reflectivity" means that the retroreflectivity becomes less than the minimum of twenty-five candlepower/per foot-candle/square foot as specified and as measured in accordance with rule 4501-27-01 of the Administrative Code.

(D) The owner of a motor vehicle for which a license plate is lost, mutilated, or destroyed; becomes illegible; or loses its reflectivity may apply for a duplicate thereof or new license plates pursuant to section 4503.19 of the Revised Code.

(E) An owner who wishes to renew the registration of a motor vehicle for which a license plate has been declared obsolete under this rule shall apply for new license plates pursuant to section 4503.10 of the Revised Code.

(F) Any license plate issued by the state of Ohio that has not yet exceeded its useful service life may continue to be displayed until it is lost, mutilated, or destroyed; becomes illegible; loses its reflectivity; or is declared obsolete under this rule, provided that the plate also displays a current and valid validation sticker and county identification sticker.

Last updated October 23, 2023 at 11:45 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4503.22, 4503.191
Amplifies: 4503.22, 4503.191
Five Year Review Date: 11/1/2026
Prior Effective Dates: 7/16/2011
Rule 4501-27-07 | Specifications for validation stickers.
 

(A) Specifications for the manufacture of validation stickers required for the annual registration of passenger, commercial, motorcycle, and other vehicles are presented herein. Except for vehicles issued permanent license plates, there shall be a single validation sticker showing the month and year that the current registration period expires issued for each vehicle. The validation sticker shall be made of weather-resistant reflective sheeting that is manufactured in a manner that ensures that the information displayed thereon remains visible for at least five years.

(B) The validation sticker shall be manufactured in a manner that insures that it shall not become brittle, flaky, discolored, or acquire a powdery surface for a period of at least five years and that permits the stacking of at least five stickers.

(C) The validation sticker under normal service use shall adhere to the surface of the license plate and, when stacked up to five stickers high, shall adhere to the sticker to which it is applied for a minimum of five years and shall not be removable intact.

(D) The director of public safety shall designate the design and colors of the validation stickers. Except as provided in paragraph (J) of this rule, the sticker design and colors for each month of each registration year shall be the same except for the applicable monthly code numbers one to twelve. The first code number shown on the sticker shall identify the month of expiration and the second series of numbers shall identify the last two digits of the year of expiration.

(E) Stickers applied in accordance with instructions shall not blister, lift, or delaminate when subjected to gasoline, kerosene, diesel oils, water, steam, and cleaning detergents normally encountered in cleaning and washing service, nor shall stickers fade, disintegrate, or come off from extended exposure within a period of five years.

(F) The dimensions of each validation sticker shall be approximately one and one-half inches in width and one inch in height.

(G) A license plate issued to a permanently registered vehicle shall bear the inscriptions "PERMANENT" and "NO EXP" in lieu of any validation sticker.

(H) The validation stickers may be produced by Ohio penal industries or the registrar's offices or by the deputy registrar or limited authority deputy registrars, as authorized by the registrar. Validation stickers produced by the registrar's offices or deputy registrars, or limited authority deputy registrars shall be produced by a '"print on demand" process, whereby the registration expiration month and year shall be printed on the validation sticker as each validation sticker is issued.

Last updated February 1, 2022 at 9:29 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4503.02, 4503.191, 4503.22
Amplifies: 4503.191, 4503.22
Five Year Review Date: 11/1/2026
Prior Effective Dates: 2/9/1987, 10/22/2011
Rule 4501-27-08 | Specifications for all-purpose vehicle decal.
 

(A) The registration of any snowmobile and any off-highway motorcycle for which no license plate is required shall be validated with two three-year decals which shall be affixed in such a manner as the registrar of motor vehicles shall prescribe. These decals shall contain the registration expiration year and month and a matching distinctive series of letters and numbers.

(B) The shape of the decal shall be similar to the shape of the state of Ohio. The dimensions of the decal shall be approximately three inches by three inches and shall contain the words, "off-road vehicle."

(C) The decal material shall be pressure-sensitive, and waterproof, with an adhesive backing protected by a paper liner.

(D) The decal color shall be as prescribed by the registrar.

Last updated October 23, 2023 at 11:45 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4503.22
Amplifies: 4519.04
Five Year Review Date: 11/1/2026
Prior Effective Dates: 2/9/1987, 7/16/2001
Rule 4501-27-10 | Specifications for county stickers.
 

(A) This rule presents the specifications for the manufacture of county identification stickers. The director of public safety shall designate the use of a county name identification sticker or a county number identification sticker for each class of license plates as appropriate.

(B) The dimensions of the county name identification sticker shall be of a size and shape that fits between the license plate bolt holes without obstructing any alpha-numeric license plate characters. The county name identification sticker shall be affixed to a clean, dry surface at the bottom center of each license plate unless the director designates a different location for any particular class of plates.

(C) The dimensions of the county number identification sticker shall be of a size and shape that fits at the bottom left corner of the license plate without obstructing any alpha-numeric license plate characters. The county number identification sticker shall be affixed to a clean, dry surface at the bottom left corner of the license plate unless the director designates a different location for any particular class of plates.

(D) The color of the letters for the county name or for the county number may match the color of the plate characters or may be of a different color. Any inventories remaining of the current issue of the county identification stickers may be exhausted prior to the issuance of new stickers as determined by the registrar of motor vehicles.

(E) The sticker shall be made of adhesive backed material which may have a scalloped scoreline or a straight scoreline at or near the center of each sticker for easy removal.

Last updated February 3, 2023 at 8:21 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4503.22
Amplifies: 4503.22, 4503.19
Five Year Review Date: 11/1/2026
Prior Effective Dates: 6/13/1996
Rule 4501-27-13 | Authority to test license plates and stickers.
 

The director of the department of public safety may authorize the manufacture and issuance of license plates and stickers for the purpose of testing materials, procedures, or innovations as to road durability and product effectiveness. Such manufacture and issuance shall be of a limited quantity with distribution and duration of issuance to be determined by the director to best accomplish the objectives set forth herein. For such testing purposes, the license plates and stickers need not conform to the specifications presented in this chapter. Nothing in this rule shall be construed to require the director or the registrar of motor vehicles to conduct testing prior to the award of any contract for the production of license plates or license plate materials.

Last updated October 23, 2023 at 11:45 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By:
Amplifies:
Five Year Review Date:
Prior Effective Dates: 2/13/1981, 6/4/1988