Pennsylvanians could be forced to add a second license plate to their cars in the years to come.
State Sen. Katie Muth, D-44, who represents portions of Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties, posted a note on the State Senate’s website seeking co-sponsors for the yet unnamed bill to move the idea through the legislator.
Sample of the Pennsylvania’s “Let Freedom Ring” license plate, to coincide with America’s Semiquincentennial, or 250th birthday, in 2026.
“In the near future, I will introduce legislation that would require all vehicles registered in the Commonwealth to display a license plate on both the front and rear of their vehicle,” she wrote on July 10.
Muth said front plates will aid police in identifying those involved in hit-and-run crashes and other crimes involving motor vehicles.
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“Requiring a license plate on the front of a car will improve vehicle identification and enhance public safety by helping law enforcement officers, witnesses, or cameras more easily and quickly identify a vehicle,” she said.
A front plate could help with toll collections, she said.
Senator Katie Muth, D-44, official state portrait.
Some 29 states require front license plates, including New Jersey, New York and Maryland.
“There is also bipartisan legislation pending in Florida that would require a front and rear registration plate,” she said, calling her idea “important.”
A 2023 study by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute showed that front license plates enhance identification in crime situations, but also result in “increased revenue for states through more easily identifiable vehicles at tollways.”
JD Mullane can be reached at jmullane@couriertimes.com.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: PA could consider front license plates for all cars