In an Associated Press story published in late June are details of retaliatory measures taken by the State Dept., presumably through the OFM, in response to U.S. The first public references to OFM plates that we've found are in a series of mid-1984 news reports in which reciprocity issues and the new plates are addressed. We don't know whether assuming responsibility from the states (and D.C.) for driver licensing and vehicle registration was part of the plan was the OFM was created. personnel abroad while assuring foreign diplomats based in the United States receive the same treatment that each respective government provides in return.” In addition to fostering mutual respect among nations through their diplomatic corps, the OFM also handles such tasks as the issuance of drivers licenses and vehicle titles, registrations, license plates processing of tax exemption and duty-free customs requests, and assisting in the purchase of U.S. On its Web site the agency indicates that it emphasizes reciprocity in order to facilitate “fair treatment of U.S. Provide the appropriate privileges, benefits, and services in a reciprocal basis to the foreign mission community in the U.S.Įstablishing and maintaining reciprocal agreements between national governments is central to OFM operations. It all came to an end when the federal government announced in mid-1984 that the registration of vehicles operated by most official representatives of foreign countries (all except honorary consuls) would soon be concentrated in a new agency within the U.S. Others, such as New Hampshire, issued only a few over a short period of time. Some, like California, New York, and Washington, D.C, issued them by the thousands during multiple decades. jurisdictions were issuing specially-marked license plates for foreign representatives. Since the dawn of the twentieth century when motor vehicles were first used and registered, and in contrast to many other countries, the federal government in the United States has always left the registration and regulation of privately-owned motor vehicles to local jurisdictions, most notably state and territorial governments.

They are issued by the Office of Foreign Missions (OFM) in Washington and through its several field offices throughout the United States. Left PL-series numbers are thought to be assigned to the Chilean embassy, but definitive information as to which two-letter codes are assigned to various embassies is classified.ĭiplomatic license plates issued by the federal government are addressed on this site because they are so much in evidence in the District of Columbia and because their history has not been addressed elsewhere. No data to suggest to which embassies YA- and CM-series numbers were assigned on this base, issued from 1984 through 2007, is known. Top Embossed (left) and flat 1984 baseplates. Office of Foreign Missions License Plates.

Ohio license plate sticker colors 2018