Want to be the 1st with a Mount St. Helens license plate? Here's your chance
Washingtonians eager to be among the very first to have the new Mount St. Helens license plate on their vehicles will want to bookmark a dedicated online auction page this weekend and watch their bid closely.
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And those who don't want to pay top dollar for a low number plate can get one from the state Department of Licensing before the end of next month.
The Mount St. Helens Institute, a nonprofit that provides educational programs, environmental stewardship and scientific studies on the mountain, will start auctioning rights to the first 25 specialty license plates beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday, July 11.
Those interested in bidding will want to visit www.msh-license-plate.auctria.events.
It will accept bids through 7:45 p.m. Tuesday, July 14. The auction for the very first plate, VM00001, will end at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday. And bidding for the final plate number of that early batch, VM00025, ends roughly 2-1/2 hours later at 7:45 p.m., according to the Auctria website.
Winners must be Washington residents able to provide information including their address and mailing address, and the plates may only go to a vehicle that is already registered in the state. Within three days of the auction, winners must provide to the Mount St. Helens institute their car's current license plate number and the last eight digits of its Vehicle Identification Number or VIN.
The nonprofit will then coordinate with the state Department of Licensing to arrange for the winners' plates.
Sample Mount St. Helens license plate
The new Visit Mount St. Helens license plate. People can bid to be one of the first buyers this weekend.
Regular MSH plate sales begin Aug. 19
Whether through the auction or through a regular vehicle licensing office, the winner will need to pay all necessary registration and specialty plate fees to the state.
In Washington, special design license plates carry an initial fee of $40 and an annual renewal fee of $30, atop all necessary vehicle registration fees that vary depending on factors such as the type of vehicle and where it's registered.
Some $28 of each of those fees collected will to the Mount St. Helens Institute.
As of Thursday morning, the link for the Mount St. Helens plate was not yet live on the Department of Licensing's special design plate website, but according to the Mount St. Helens Institute it will be available starting Aug. 19.
For more info check mshinstitute.org/msh-license-plate, with a local vehicle licensing office or dol.wa.gov.
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