Which is the only US state with “USA” on its standard license plates?

New Mexico began requiring its residents to register their motor vehicles and display license plates in 1912, the same year it became the 47th state to enter the Union.

The state’s standard bright yellow and red license plates, as well as some of the other designs, (for example, the turquoise and white “Land of Enchantment” plate issued in 2016, and the black “Chile Capital of the World” plate issued in 2017) are embossed along the bottom edge with the words “New Mexico USA”. That feature makes them unlike any other standard license plate in the country.

New Mexico is the only state in the Union which specifies "USA" on its license plates. The reason why is relatively simple; it was placed there in order to avoid confusion with the country of Mexico, which borders it to the southwest.

The license plates are unique in another way as well; the Zia sun symbol that appears on most New Mexico plates is the world’s oldest continuously used promotional graphic on a license plate. The symbol made its debut on the state’s flag in 1925 and appeared on license plates in 1927.