GLEN BURNIE, Md. — Maryland drivers who live in the state but carry out-of-state license plates are facing increased pressure to come into compliance, and new financial penalties if they don't.
The Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration recently launched its "Plate Where You Live" campaign, alerting drivers to increased enforcement penalties beginning October 1. The push comes after the agency mailed warning letters in January to about 54,000 drivers connected to nearly 80,000 vehicles that may be improperly registered, and that was for Virginia plates alone. The new law applies to all out-of-state plates.
READ MORE: Maryland cracks down on drivers using Virginia license plates, sends 58,000 warning letters
Maryland law has long required new residents to register their vehicles within 60 days of moving to the state, but the MVA says too many haven't followed through.
"The interesting thing is we found articles back to the late 1980s saying that this has been an issue, but really the sense was the numbers were increasing, that people were seeing more vehicles with Virginia tags on the road," MVA Administrator Chrissy Nizer said.
Under the new legislation, fines are set at $7 a day, up to $420.
"There is notification period, so the fines don't start right away," Nizer said.
Drivers who don't pay and reach the maximum amount could face additional consequences.
"If you don't pay and you reach that maximum amount under law, there are additional enforcement mechanisms that come into play that could include tag pickup orders. It could include civil action by local level," Nizer said.
Local law enforcement can already cite drivers for improper registration, and the MVA is also accepting tips from the public.
"From individuals who might have a neighbor or somebody they know who is in this situation. We obviously investigate, give the individual time to come into compliance, but MVA also independently accepts those complaints or information from customers," Nizer said.
Registration costs have been cited as a driving factor behind why so many Maryland residents carry Virginia plates. Virginia charges just $30.75 for registration, compared to $191.50 in Maryland, which has seen back-to-back increases in recent years.
"What do you say to drivers who feel it's become unaffordable to register in Maryland?" WMAR-2 News Mallory Sofastaii asked Governor Wes Moore.
"Yeah, well, the thing I would say is that these registrations and the increases that we have seen oftentimes, a lot of these increases are standard increases that take place regardless of who, what administration's on board or who's there. And what those things are doing is they're helping to pay for things like safer roads, they're helping to pay for things like bridge repairs, they're helping to pay for things like tunnel repairs," Moore said. "But we are going to continue our quest to both making sure that our roads, bridges, and tunnels are safe and also making sure we're bringing costs down for the people of our state."
Nizer added that registration fees fund critical services many Maryland residents rely on.
"Part of Shock Trauma and our hospital system is paid through that surcharge. That's part of your registration fee. So it's really about making sure we have those critical services that all Maryland residents really appreciate," Nizer said.
The MVA also noted that other states carry additional costs like annual inspections and personal property tax that Maryland does not charge. Customers now also have the option to do a 1, 2, or 3-year renewal and space out payments.
Maryland and Virginia have had discussions about whether Virginia could change its laws to require drivers to have in-state addresses. Currently, Virginia law does not require drivers to be a resident of Virginia in order to register a vehicle there.
"And so until that law changes, it does allow people to continue to register it there," said Nizer.
"Have there been discussions between Maryland and Virginia's leadership as far as them changing their laws or why don't they?" asked Sofastaii.
"Yes, we’ve certainly had conversations. Obviously, everything that happens in this region impacts all of us," said Nizer. "I think that law, the way the law is written, has been in place for a while, would require an act by the legislature of Virginia in order to change that and obviously they're looking at financial considerations as well and what the impact of that would be if they were to change that law."
The MVA plans to send out the next batch of warning letters at the end of July, giving drivers until October 1 to register their vehicles before increased penalties take effect.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.