BEAUMONT, Texas — Temporary tags in Texas are getting a new look.
The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles revealed its redesigned version on last week, with new security features aimed at fighting fake paper license plates on vehicles involved in crimes and drivers trying to avoid tolls and registration fees.
Vidor Police Department Captain Ed Martin says criminals riding around with fake tags could be involved in bank robberies, kidnapping and even human trafficking.
"There was approximately $325 million in lost revenue made by criminals printing these paper plates," Martin said.
Making tags is also a big business. Fake tags have generated $220 million, making it a lucrative criminal enterprise.
"Up until recently, they were so easy to obtain and copy you could buy them on Facebook Marketplace. They would sell these paper tags to make money instead of selling them with a car," Martin said.
Martin hopes this new revamp will help crack down on crime in Southeast Texas.
"The temp tag now has a watermark Texas flag there's a bar code number on the right edge that corresponds with the number that you'll get in the TCIC return from the DMV," Martin said.
There are also blurred-out squares that law enforcement plans to use to help identify fake tags.
With the current tags, if individuals are stopped by officers, the tags are virtually untraceable.
The make and model might match, but it could have a completely different VIN number.
"Until the state of Texas does away with paper tags and goes to issuing metal tags from dealers when they sell a car, it's always going to be a problem," Martin said.
Officials says if you suspect that you may be driving around with a fake license tag, you should go to your local police station and get it checked out.
Licensed dealerships will start issuing the newly designed tags on December 9, 2022.
In February, the head of the Texas DMV resigned amid pressure on the agency to address security vulnerabilities that allowed criminals to recreate and sell fake paper license plates.
When Whitney Brewster announced her resignation, she didn't address the issue directly.
“I understand the frustrations of our stakeholders to the problems and evolving situations we are working daily to resolve,” Brewster said in a statement Monday. “Often the hardest thing to do as a public servant leader is to step back and accept that you have done everything you can, and that it might be time to allow new leadership to take the reins.”