Bill would recast specialty plate program

Nearly three dozen not-for-profits would have to stop selling their specialty license plates under a bill approved by an Indiana House panel Wednesday. The legislation would eliminate specialty plates approved this year and those that sold fewer than 1,000 in 2011. Indiana not-for-profits receive $25 from every $40 a motorist spends on a specialty plate. The state sold more than 420,000 such plates last year, netting more than $11 million for the organizations, but bill backers say there are too many plates and not enough oversight of how the money is spent. Groups that could be affected if the measure passes include the Indianapolis Zoo, Habitat for Humanity and Indiana Youth Group.