Marissa Dabila expects the end of the month will be a little bit crazy in Albany County for those renewing their license plates.
That’s because there’s a shortage of the new Wyoming plates that rolled out earlier this year and hundreds of people are trying to get renewed on time.
“There’s four of us up here at the counter and we each probably go through a box of 100 each week,” Dabila told Cowboy State Daily. “So, we’re going through 400 plates every week, and they’re only sending us 100 a week for cars and trucks.”
That has Dabila and other clerks in the Albany County Treasurer’s Office telling patrons whose plates don’t renew until the end of the month to wait until then.
Those who wish to can leave a check for the office and get their plates postage-free in the mail, Dabila added.
“We have a whole stack of those,” she said. “But I’m sure the end of the month will look crazy for everyone that we’ve told to come in closer to the end of the month. And then just all the mail and online payments we have. It will definitely be busy.”
The delay has been caused by staffing shortages and equipment failure, said Wyoming Department of Transportation Public Affairs Officer Doug McGee.
“WYDOT’s license plate production plant was recently down for about a week and a half due to equipment malfunction,” he said. “The plant is also experiencing unexpected staffing shortages. It has a small crew, and the loss of a few key positions can create delays.”
The Cheyenne facility where license plates are made is back in business now, McGee added.
“In addition, we’re temporarily working with a Colorado license plate facility to help us get caught up to normal output,” he said. “We are prioritizing counties who are running short, in order to reduce disruptions to the public as much as possible.”
Not An Excuse To Keep Old Plate For Long
Some folks in Albany County were not too upset about a delay in getting the new design, which features a dark blue (almost black) background and large, white, blocky lettering.
A shadowy bison floats in the background with the state seal, and the whole design is enclosed by a thin red border, simulating the state’s flag.
The required bucking horse logo is in the center of the plate, as usual, and there’s a new tagline for tourism, “That’s Wy,” along with the travelwyoming.com website address.
The design has not been universally loved, with some calling the plates ugly and saying they preferred Wyoming's beautiful scenery on previous plates, which came from the Green River Lakes region and is framed by the Wind River Mountain range off in the distance.
“No worries, I’ll just keep my old one,” Humberto Vasquez said on the Albany County Treasurer’s Facebook post about the shortage. “I like it more.”
The delay will only be temporary, Dabila said, and won’t likely last long enough for anyone who doesn’t like the new design to keep their plates into 2026.
The new plates are mandatory for all motorists renewing plates this year, Dabila said.
“If you do have the old one, it would make it easier for law enforcement to spot expired plates at that time,” she said. “Because everyone should be on the new ones by then.”
Wyomingites who want something that looks a little different could look at the state’s specialty license plates.
Most of them look similar to the new design, but the University of Wyoming plate has mountains in the background, and its colors are brown and gold.
New Design In Eight Years, Unless …
The new design is locked in for at least eight years, when state statutes say a new design must be selected.
Under the existing process, a committee will start work on changing the design a few years in advance. The selection is a mixture of feedback from people in the state, as well as the printing capabilities of its Cheyenne shop, where all of the state’s plates are made.
McGee said part of the reason for the simpler design this time around is that scenery doesn’t reproduce as well with the materials the state uses to make its plates.
That prompted the design committee to take a more old-school approach this time around, with three possible options.
“One option was a red background with white letters and numbers, which comes from the early 1900s. I believe there is a Wyoming plate that way,” McGee said. “And another option was a beige-brown background with brown numbers. And again, that’s an early 1900s. In fact, I think that plate was 1917. And then the (state) flag (design).”
While Wyoming statutes presently require a new design in eight years, that might not always be the case.
There was an effort in this past legislative session that would have made the new design permanent, along with changing several other things about how the state issues plates. Instead of counties issuing the plates, they would have been issued by the state.
The bill sponsored by Rep. Cody Wylie, R-Rock Springs, was promoted as a way to streamline registrations, as well as save money, but it didn’t make it past the House of Representatives.
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
