SALEM—Oregonians soon may be able to purchase “wine country” license plates, with proceeds going to promote state tourism. The plates cost $30 and feature a countryside vista of rolling hills covered with fields of grape vines. “The wine country plate is unique and distinctive…and will serve as a moving billboard promoting our beautiful state and a great industry we have,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Kevin Cameron, R-Salem, on the House floor. The legislation directs the Oregon Tourism Commission to distribute the funds to tourism promotion agencies in wine-producing regions of the state. “It was an opportunity to promote an agricultural industry in our state as well as using the revenue off the plates to help promote tourism and agricultural programs,” said Rep. Cameron. Michelle Godfrey, public relations manager for the Oregon Tourism Commission, said the funds could go to things such as producing visitor guides, improving website functionality and advertising to develop regional wine industries. The mid-Willamette Valley region, which includes Marion, Polk and Yamhill Counties, received specific mention in the bill as a recipient of tourism promotion funds. “It’s a way of not only promoting tourism,” said Sen. Jackie Winters, R-Salem. “It’s something that allows us to highlight the actual wine industry that has become a major industry for Oregon.” Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, shares Sen. Winters’s enthusiasm for the wine industry in Oregon but doesn’t think making a new specialty plate is necessary. “When you add more plates, it just dilutes the market,” she said. “We ought to give some thought to rotating some off.” Sen. Johnson referenced data from the state Department of Transportation indicating a significant decline in the purchasing of specialty license plates. David House, a spokesman for the state Department of Motor Vehicles, says the DMV has “no idea” how well the wine country plates will sell. If approved, the wine country plate would join 30 specialty and group plates currently offered by the DMV. The plates’ designs include recognitions of salmon or Crater Lake, as well as non-profit organizations, state universities and the armed services. House said the salmon and Crater Lake plates sell “pretty well,” with yearly requests in the tens of thousands. The others don’t do as well, he said, and one or two plates usually cycle out each year. Oregonians must purchase at least 500 copies of a specialty plate in a year for it to remain active. Specialty and group plates represent a small minority of total plate sales, as over 90 percent of drivers registering for a plate choose the standard evergreen design. Still, Sen. Winters says the plate has potential for improving wine tourism in the state if the various wine industries and government agencies successfully “do their work” in promoting wine tourism. And the Oregon Tourism Commission agrees, according to Godfrey. “Anything that supports the industry is certainly worthwhile,” she said. Sen. Winters says that Oregon is at an advantage, as neither Oregon nor Washington has produced a license plate referencing the wine industry. Either way, Rep. Cameron says the plates won’t cost taxpayers any more than they are willing to pay. “This is a budget neutral bill,” he said. “All the cost to launch and administer the program will be assumed by the Oregon Tourism Commission and covered by the plate proceeds.”
