U.S. Congress Permit

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Annual Special Hauling Permit

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• Permits, which have most or all characteristics of license plates described elsewhere on this site but that are not used to show evidence of a vehicle registration. Metal permits that often resemble license plates in their construction, size, colors, etc., are routinely issued to show compliance with municipal and state commercial licensing regulations. For example, beginning in the late 1930s many states issued separate metal plates for use on trucks and trailers to show that the operators had paid required interstate and/or intrastate business fees and road taxes. (These plates were routinely replaced by stickers during the 1960s and 1970s.) Municipalities often issue plates to show that taxi operators have complied with certain licensing regulations. And, of course, D.C. has its early coal dealer permits, as well as plate attachments for the press and members of Congress.
• Sample license plates, which are distributed to law enforcement agencies, license plate collectors, and others that wish to have an example of how issued plates appear.
• U.S. Government plates, which, although they are not D.C. plates, are addressed due to their prevalence within the nation's capital.