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HOUSTON - "LA KILLA", "2@BADASH", or "MR.CRAZY" won’t be hitting the streets of Texas any time soon.
Those are just some of the thousands of personalized license plate proposals that were rejected by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles last year.
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According to TxDMV records for the first 10 months of 2022, more than 5,000 license plates were declined in that time span. Data wasn’t yet available for November and December.
Vehicle owners in Texas who don’t want an assigned plate can pay extra for a personalized one, but they have to follow guidelines. The approval decision ultimately lies with the TxDMV.
License plates can contain letters, numbers, spaces, and symbols like hyphens, periods, hearts, stars, or the state silhouette, but they cannot have indecent, vulgar, or derogatory content.
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That doesn’t stop people from trying. Some submissions show people trying to omit or add letters, or creatively use symbols, to disguise forbidden phrases like "TATTD*AF". Others contained blatant swear words.
Other reasons plates can get rejected are for references to race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation, even if the reference is not derogatory, references to drugs or crime, or references to law enforcement or military branches.
Here are some of the plates that were rejected in 2022:
SHE MAD
COOLAF
F@RT
SCAM
SHECAPN
BADAZZ
SAV4G3
ROADRG3
UR NEXXT
SADGRL
ASHOOOL
SNAZZY B
KONVICT
STONED1
STONERR
KSSTHIS
COKANE
SPICEGL
TOOTED
NO EFFS
N4KD
NF*GVN
GOT BUNS
JAN-6TH
F BDN
OLD MANS
FELLON
TOESUKR
VENGNC
SMKE*EM
4MAGA
BYE@H8RZ
IM PSSD
UPRISE
FN FANCY
TX AF 1
URDONE4
SHITTYB
BLU BLLS
SKMYBLS
69BLUE
ST@NER
Why do some Texas personalized license plates get rejected?
According to the TxDMV, there are a number of reasons a personalized license plate "pattern" can get declined.
One reason could be if the plate conflicts with a current or proposed plate pattern issued by the state.
However, the TxDMV says plates can also be rejected if they are considered "objectionable", "misleading" or one of the following:
· Indecent, which includes references to a sexual act, sexual body part, excretory or bodily fluids or functions, or a "69"
· Vulgar, meaning containing swear or curse words
· Derogatory, including words that belittle, demean, or disparage any person, group, race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, or associated with an organization that advocates such expressions
· Refer to race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation, even if the reference is not derogatory
· Refer to illegal activity like gangs, violence, or implied threats of harm. It also cannot describe, advertise, advocate, promote, encourage, glorify, or condone violence, crime or unlawful conduct.
· Refer to a controlled substance or illegal drug or the physiological state produced by the substance
· Uses a representation of, or reference to, law enforcement, military branches, or other governmental entities and their titles, including acronyms. References to publicly or privately funded colleges or universities are allowed.
· Has a pattern that has been set aside exclusively for use on military or other restricted-use license plates such as "DV" for disabled veterans.
For a full list of guidelines, click here.