Service Oklahoma announces its public awareness campaign to inform all Oklahomans of the upcoming overhaul to the vehicle registration process in accordance with Senate Bill 2035.
Ready, Set, Tag! will educate the public about the fundamental shift in the way license plates are issued in the State of Oklahoma. Starting September 1, 2024, the new vehicle registration process will expedite the issuance of metal license plates along with two temporary decals provided during a pre-registration that is completed with the initial purchase of a vehicle. Oklahomans can learn more at ReadySetTag.com.
KC Sheperd caught up with Jay Doyle, Chief Executive Officer for Service Oklahoma, to talk about Ready Set Tag, which is set to take effect on September 1.
Ready Set Tag is a public awareness campaign around the Mason Treat Act. What is means is that any vehicle purchased September first or after in the state of Oklahoma will be subjected to a pre-registration process. The goal of the preregistration process is to get a metal plate on the back of the vehicle as soon as possible.
Doyle said that paper tags just aren’t cutting the mustard. “As the driver, you have to worry about the paper tag getting damaged, or falling off, or torn or ripped. From a law enforcement standpoint, they have no idea who is driving a vehicle that has a paper tag, so it is a liability and a public safety hazard for them.”
In the new vehicle registration process, Oklahomans will have ten days from the time of purchase to get a metal license plate and two pre-registration decals on their newly purchased vehicles. The new pre-registration process simplifies the changes, making it easy for Oklahomans.
The Mason Treat Act
Senate Bill 2035 was named the Mason Treat Act after Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat’s son was critically injured in January during a routine traffic stop. Canadian County Deputy Jose Tayahua-Mendoza was also seriously injured in the accident. The bill aims to improve road safety for drivers and law enforcement officers by limiting the amount of time temporary paper tags are on vehicles. A ceremonial signing of the bill will take place on July 31 to commemorate this momentous change for Oklahoma.
Service Oklahoma Process Updates for September 1, 2024
Service Oklahoma has created a user-friendly pre-registration process for dealers, sellers and buyers to submit information about the sale of a vehicle. The pre-registration process, for both dealer and private vehicle sales, must be initiated within two business days of the vehicle purchase. When purchasing a vehicle from a dealership, the dealer will assist with the buyer’s pre-registration.
To make it more convenient, the pre-registration process will be electronic so it can easily be completed online. Once completed, two pre-registration decals will be issued to the buyer by the selected licensed operator. The pre-registration decals indicate the vehicle owner information has been shared with the State, but the vehicle is not fully registered.
“The preregistration process doesn’t cost the purchaser any extra funds,” Doyle allowed. “And you still have the two month period to fully register your vehicle. It really is designed to be as quick and easy as possible.”
All Oklahoma license plates are assigned to people, not vehicles, so many buyers will transfer their existing metal license plates to their newly purchased vehicles. Buyers that are not transferring a metal license plate will be issued a standard metal license plate in the pre-registration process.
Remember Ten & Two
Here’s how the new vehicle pre-registration process will work starting September 1, 2024.
Ten
Oklahomans will have ten days from the date of sale to get a metal license plate and pre-registration decals on their newly purchased vehicles. The pre-registration decals indicate the vehicle sale information has been sent to Service Oklahoma, but the vehicle has not yet been fully registered.
- If an Oklahoman is transferring their current metal license plate to a new vehicle, they will simply add the pre-registration decals to their existing metal plate.
- If an Oklahoman does not have a metal license plate, they will receive a standard metal license plate along with their pre-registration decals. A paper temporary tag will be available to affix on the vehicle while awaiting the metal license plate for up to ten days.
Two
Oklahomans will still have two months from the date of purchase to complete their vehicle registration and will then replace the pre-registration decals with the standard month and year decals.
A fun way to remember the process is to recall driver education instructors teaching pupils to hold the steering wheel at 10 and 2. You have two days to preregister your vehicle at Service Oklahoma, and you have ten days to put the temporary plate and/or decals on your car. Then you have 2 months to come within full compliance of registering your vehicle.
Readysettag.com includes all of the information related to the Mason Treat Act to answer any questions people might have. It has also recently launched a new checklist for citizens that pertains to situational questions such as when trading a vehicle in or buying from a dealership. There is also a link to the portal where purchasers can preregister their vehicle or check the status of their preregistration process.
As the Mason Treat Act was passed to make roads safer for Oklahoma drivers and law enforcement officers, vehicle owner information will be available to law enforcement groups and the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority faster through the pre-registration process starting September 1, 2024.
