Eliminate Front Licence Plate

The Government of Ontario, in a recent news release, stated in part that “Ontario remains committed to controlling its spending...”.  In its efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate the current 2012-2013 deficit of $9.2 billion by 2017-2018, and if there’s insufficient economic growth, the government could be faced with program cuts along with restrictions in hiring and limits in public sector salaries.

As part of their efforts at spending reductions, the government may wish to consider reducing the costs associated with the licencing of vehicles. Ontario manufactures approximately 1.3 million sets of plates (pairs and singles) per year of which 1,080,000 sets are pairs. The cost per pair has been reported as $3.60. The elimination of the front licence plate could therefore yield an annual savings in excess of $2 million. Other provinces and some U.S. states appear to have adjusted quite well to having only one plate on their vehicles. Why would it be any different in Ontario? If the government were to proceed with this initiative it would signal taxpayers that they are serious about eliminating unnecessary expenses. This is something that could have and should have been addressed years ago.