Why do we have to pay for license plates, and why do so many procrastinate getting them?

A couple of years ago my tag was expired and past due about 15 days, I was on my way to work in my old beater 1966 ¾ ton GMC pickup truck when I was reminded they were expired. There I was about 5:30 in the morning tooling along at about 35 miles an hour, the truck was old and I do not drive fast, the speed limit was 40. All of the sudden the blue lights come on, well I immediately switch lanes to allow the officer to pass me on his way to what appeared to an important crime scene. Well I look back and low and behold he switched lanes as well. I remember thinking, you dumbass I just moved out of your way, so I changed lanes again only to see him change lanes and take up a spot even closer behind me. I had not reached my Gate station so I had not had my coffee yet, so that explains that. Well I immediately pull into a well lit parking lot and gathered my registration and insurance card. While I am doing that I hear over his speaker, “driver, turn off the vehicle” I was thinking do you not see I am driving an 1966 beater pickup truck. At this point I was getting irritated and shut the vehicle off, I also placed both my hands on the window ledge in plain site. That was something the two brother in-laws I had that were cops told me I should always do.

Officer friendly approaches my truck and asked for my registration and proof of insurance, which I offer him along with the question what is going on here officer? He tells me to remain in the vehicle and returns to his car. Now I have no idea that I forgot to renew my tags at this point so I am thinking, maybe a drug cartel is using old wore out pieces of crap trucks to run drugs. My old truck probably would not get going faster than 50-55 anyway, I never left town with it so I am not sure. So officer friendly comes back to my window and asks, do you know why I pulled you over? I said no, I have no idea, why did you pull me over. He then indicated that my tag was expired and gave me a ticket for it, not a warning but a ticket. He then told me if I got my tag renewed within 24 hours the fine would be waived. I thanked him and went on my way. Later that day I went to the tax collectors office to renew my tag, which went OK. I then got in a different line to talk to a different person about the ticket and fine. She looked at me like I was from Mars and told me I had to pay the fine. I told her I will be going to court because officer friendly told me differently and I did not pay at that time.

I was pissed all day long. Well that night at 9:45pm there is a thump thump on my front door, I gaze through the peep hole and low and behold there are two cops standing there. Although it is not the same cop, I wonder to myself, was there a ticket or fine he forgot to give me this morning. After turning on the light and opening the door, and refusing when they asked if they could come in, they explain that officer friendly from this morning had made a mistake on that ticket. Turns out there is a 30 day grace period for expired tags and the FNG officer friendly from this morning did not know that so their sergeant sent them to pick up the ticket. I remember thinking I am glad I did not pay that fine this morning. So after taking both their names and badge numbers and having them sign a paper I wrote up saying they were taking the ticket back I was off the hook for the 80 some odd dollar fine.

Since my first car (a 74 Vega GT) I have never felt that tags were a fair tax, I know fair is where you go to get funnel cake but all the same. I have never been able to force myself to get my tags on time, which is a shame in this day and age. In recent years I have even set reminders on my computer, even sent a calendar event to have others remind me all to no avail. When we lived in Maryland we were able to get 2 year tags, which I did, and that allowed me to only have to deal with them every 2 years, A blessing I thought. When I moved to Florida we were back to the one year at a time deal. I did write a letter about that recommending Florida adopt the two year tags, that was in 1990 and just this year I learned that we had implemented a program that allowed us to purchase a one or two year tag. I am not sure if they did it because of my recommendation or not but I like the offering. Anyway now I stand a better chance and I know now I have 30 days to get it covered before officer friendly can touch me.

What does that money go towards?