Tasteless Tax
Cars beat football: FERRARI license plate whips COWBOYS in high-stakes auction
Nearly 1,000 Texans convened at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Thursday evening for a record-setting auction of personalized license plates. It was the first auction in which state residents could bid on personalized plates with a full seven letters of their choosing. The night's top seller was a plate with the word "FERRARI."
Dallas physician Salman Waheed purchased four of the 33 specialized plates up for auction: PORSCHE , T STARS, T DALLAS and AMERICA .
"I came to this country 16 years ago and became a naturalized citizen, and I believe it is an honor to be an American citizen," Waheed told Austin's KXAN about his new plates.
Other big sellers included "COWBOYS" for $11,500 and "GO HORNS" for $10,500. The plates are valid for 25 years, after which they can be renewed every 10 years. What's more, the plates can be legally sold at a profit by their owners.
Although the auction of 33 pieces raised a total $138,650, a mere $78,422.50 will benefit the state general revenue fund, with the rest leaking to My Plates, the private vender chosen to market and sell the specialty plates. The state's cut on each plate ranged from 50 to 65 of the purchase price.
