Arkansas

Arkansas 1969 passenger issue. Arkansas is a pretty easy state for the baseplate-run collector, as they've used very few variations in the past 30 years. This plate was introduced in 1968 and was issued through 1976, at the end of the EEW series. It remained valid with proper stickers through the end of 1982. This particular plate was likely an original 1968 issue and renewed for 1969.

Arkansas 1969 passenger issue. Another 1969 plate, this issue is likely a natural-issue 1969, using a different set of month and year stickers as well as a revised state name die (slightly shorter and wider, with the shape of the "S" characters the easiest way to spot the difference.)

Arkansas 1977 passenger issue. In 1976, the slogan "Land of Opportunity" was added to the baseplate, which was continuing on from the 1968 base. The slogan had been used from 1950-67 and was skipped on the 1968 base. This variation was issued from 1976 through 1978, from the beginning of the EEX series through the GEC series. This base remained valid with stickers through 1982. Arkansas plates of this era were odd in that a new month sticker was issued every year to match the color of the year sticker. This plate as a result has a stack of both month and year stickers, presumably matching in color for each year. This practice continued through 1991, after which a single month sticker was adopted.

Arkansas 1979 passenger issue. This graphic issue was introduced in 1978 and was issued through 1988. It remains valid with stickers through the present. This base started in the GED series and ran through the POR series before being retired in 1988.

Arkansas 1990 passenger issue. This base was issued from 1989 through 1996, from the start of the POS series until the end of the numbering sequence at ZZZ-999. The slogan was changed to "The Natural State", which remains today.

Arkansas 1997 passenger issue. When the numbering series ran out in 1996, a new baseplate variation was issued with a reverse-series 123-ABC format. This plate is similar to the 1978-89 issue in color and design, but has the "Natural State" slogan and a slightly darker blue for the state name and slogan.

Arkansas 1999 passenger issue. In 1997, the contract for producing Arkansas plates was awarded to Waldale, Ltd. in Nova Scotia. Initial Waldale-produced plates retained the standard Arkansas dies, with the only notable difference being that the edges of the plate itself were more squared off. This arrangement started at some point in the late BDx or early BEx series and lasted somewhere into the DDx series of plates. The earliest Waldale plates with the Arkansas dies, through the mid-BFO series, had more widely spaced serials than later ones (see next.)

Arkansas 1999 passenger issue. Minor-variation time. Another Waldale-made plate using standard Arkansas dies, starting in the later part of the BFO series the spacing was closed up a bit on the serial, resulting in a narrower space between letters and numbers. The narrow-space version was the more common of these plates, lasting from mid-BFO through the retirement of the Arkansas dies in the late DCx/early DDx series (see next.)

Arkansas 2000 passenger issue. Starting in 1999, Waldale started using their own dies on Arkansas plates. These dies are the same as the ones currently used by Manitoba, New Brunswick, Alberta and others. These dies started appearing somewhere in the late DCx/early DDx series of plates.

Arkansas 2007 passenger issue. The general issue for Arkansas was changed in March, 2006 at the start of the KPG series. This issue features the image of a diamond in the center, against a blue fading background. The diamond graphic is representative of the state's diamond mine in Murfreesboro, which is the only open-to-the-public diamond mining facility in the United States. This plate is currently issued only to new registrants and by request, with older plates still revalidated with stickers.

Arkansas 2019 passenger issue. In 2018, Arkansas switched the diamond base to 3M's HD sheeting, resulting in a brighter, textured background with state-shaped security marks running down the left edge of the plate. This change occurred at the beginning of the X series.

Arkansas 2022 passenger issue. In the spring of 2021, Arkansas finally reached 999 ZZZ on the previous format and flipped to this ABC-12D format. This format has, of course, been used by several other states previously (New Jersey, Florida, Texas, etc.) and should serve Arkansas for quite some time given the current rate of issuance. The HD diamond base remains otherwise unchanged.

Additional Arkansas information provided by: Jeff Ellis

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Last Modified 8/1/2022 (added 2022 plate).

	Arkansas 1969 passenger issue. Arkansas is a pretty easy state for the baseplate-run collector, as they've used very few variations in the past 30 years. This plate was introduced in 1968 and was issued through 1976, at the end of the EEW series. It remained valid with proper stickers through the end of 1982. This particular plate was likely an original 1968 issue and renewed for 1969.
	Arkansas 1969 passenger issue. Another 1969 plate, this issue is likely a natural-issue 1969, using a different set of month and year stickers as well as a revised state name die (slightly shorter and wider, with the shape of the "S" characters the easiest way to spot the difference.)
	Arkansas 1977 passenger issue. In 1976, the slogan "Land of Opportunity" was added to the baseplate, which was continuing on from the 1968 base. The slogan had been used from 1950-67 and was skipped on the 1968 base. This variation was issued from 1976 through 1978, from the beginning of the EEX series through the GEC series. This base remained valid with stickers through 1982. Arkansas plates of this era were odd in that a new month sticker was issued every year to match the color of the year sticker. This plate as a result has a stack of both month and year stickers, presumably matching in color for each year. This practice continued through 1991, after which a single month sticker was adopted.
	Arkansas 1979 passenger issue. This graphic issue was introduced in 1978 and was issued through 1988. It remains valid with stickers through the present. This base started in the GED series and ran through the POR series before being retired in 1988.
	Arkansas 1990 passenger issue. This base was issued from 1989 through 1996, from the start of the POS series until the end of the numbering sequence at ZZZ-999. The slogan was changed to "The Natural State", which remains today.
	Arkansas 1997 passenger issue. When the numbering series ran out in 1996, a new baseplate variation was issued with a reverse-series 123-ABC format. This plate is similar to the 1978-89 issue in color and design, but has the "Natural State" slogan and a slightly darker blue for the state name and slogan.
	Arkansas 1999 passenger issue. In 1997, the contract for producing Arkansas plates was awarded to Waldale, Ltd. in Nova Scotia. Initial Waldale-produced plates retained the standard Arkansas dies, with the only notable difference being that the edges of the plate itself were more squared off. This arrangement started at some point in the late BDx or early BEx series and lasted somewhere into the DDx series of plates. The earliest Waldale plates with the Arkansas dies, through the mid-BFO series, had more widely spaced serials than later ones (see next.)
	Arkansas 1999 passenger issue. Minor-variation time. Another Waldale-made plate using standard Arkansas dies, starting in the later part of the BFO series the spacing was closed up a bit on the serial, resulting in a narrower space between letters and numbers. The narrow-space version was the more common of these plates, lasting from mid-BFO through the retirement of the Arkansas dies in the late DCx/early DDx series (see next.)
	Arkansas 2000 passenger issue. Starting in 1999, Waldale started using their own dies on Arkansas plates. These dies are the same as the ones currently used by Manitoba, New Brunswick, Alberta and others. These dies started appearing somewhere in the late DCx/early DDx series of plates.
	Arkansas 2007 passenger issue. The general issue for Arkansas was changed in March, 2006 at the start of the KPG series. This issue features the image of a diamond in the center, against a blue fading background. The diamond graphic is representative of the state's diamond mine in Murfreesboro, which is the only open-to-the-public diamond mining facility in the United States. This plate is currently issued only to new registrants and by request, with older plates still revalidated with stickers.
	Arkansas 2019 passenger issue. In 2018, Arkansas switched the diamond base to 3M's HD sheeting, resulting in a brighter, textured background with state-shaped security marks running down the left edge of the plate. This change occurred at the beginning of the X series.
	Arkansas 2022 passenger issue. In the spring of 2021, Arkansas finally reached 999 ZZZ on the previous format and flipped to this ABC-12D format. This format has, of course, been used by several other states previously (New Jersey, Florida, Texas, etc.) and should serve Arkansas for quite some time given the current rate of issuance. The HD diamond base remains otherwise unchanged.