IN BRIEF

-- Susan McCormack

The state’s Coastal Commission is urging holiday shoppers to

consider purchasing a specialty license plate, which will help support

the preservation of the coastline.

Further, the license plate is a gift that ends up on the back of

someone’s car and not in the back of their closet, the commissioners

said.

The commission has created three plates benefiting the entire California

coast, Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park. The plate for the coast

features a whale tail.

Since it was launched in 1997, more than 30,000 plates have been sold,

raising more than $2 million for projects such as Coastal Cleanup Day,

the Adopt-a-Beach Program, beach wheelchairs and Coastal Experience Camp.

The plates cost $50 more than the normal licensing fee and have a $40

renewal fee.

Anyone interested in purchasing the plates may call 1-877-ECOPLATES.