It has finally taken its last turn and is now ready to hit the open road. On Wednesday June 3rd, at Arapahoe Basin, Governor Bill Ritter signed Senate bill 161 giving the final thumbs-up to a special Colorado skiing license plate. The plates, which depict a skier and rider enjoying their sports under a bluebird Colorado sky, should be available in time for next ski season.
It’s been a long time coming. For decades, individuals have been calling Colorado Ski Country USA’s (CSCUSA) offices interested in a ski license plate to display their enthusiasm for Colorados signature sport. Over the past several years, Colorado Ski Country USA has helped to organize these voices, putting out a request for signatures and petitioning the Department of Revenue to move forward with a ski plate.
The Department of Revenue requires a minimum of 3,000 signatures in order to give its consent for authorizing specialized plates. CSCUSA’s signature-collecting efforts exceeded that threshold quickly. The signing at Arapahoe Basin comes after nearly 4,500 people signed a petition to request that the Department of Revenue offer the plates. Senator Dan Gibbs sponsored the bill in the Senate and Representative Christine Scanlan carried the measure through the House.
Over the course of a year, Colorado Ski Country USA and the Department have been working together to design a plate depicting a skier flying through Colorado powder and a snowboarder doing a grab from a jump. The plate will bear the tagline “Ski Country USA” and the Governor’s signing makes it official that Colorado is the only state in the nation with a license plate depicting a snowboarder as well as a skier.
The state will collect an extra fee of $50 to issue the Colorado ski plate to drivers. The fee will help to pay for Colorado’s roads and bridges. The state’s legislative council estimates that, in their first year, the plates will generate about $30,000 in support for transportation on top of what it costs to make the plate, with even more new revenue expected in the following years.
Other states, such as Utah, New York, and Idaho, offer ski license plates. When vehicles with those plates travel to other states, the home state’ ski industry gets extra exposure. When the Colorado Ski Country USA plates travel outside Colorado, they will compete with those other states, giving our states beloved winter sports publicity at a time when it is especially needed.
Colorado Ski Country USA expects the new ski license plate to be popular among skiers, riders, and other Coloradans who are loyal to the state’s ski heritage.
