California Exempt

On the 280 Freeway between San Jose and San Francisco the other day, I spotted a white mini-hatchback car with an unusual California license plate that read “CA EXEMPT” with a bunch of numbers.

I immediately asked the wife (rhetorically, for I know she didn’t know the answer) was, “Exempt from what?”

I wanted to take a picture, but because I was driving on a 4-lane freeway with lots of other people, it wouldn’t have been safe for me to whip out my camera and snap away while trying to stay within the white lines, would it?

So instead of an instant photo recording, the incident prompted an inquisitive search when we got home. Success! And I even found a picture of such a plate.

It turns out that cars bearing “Exempt” plates are registration exempt because they’re vehicles owned or leased by the U.S. Government, state agencies, cities and counties, or special districts – such as city buses, city hall vehicles, and law enforcement.

The “CA EXEMPT” plates therefore are on vehicles owned or leased by the State of California.

The things one learns every day.