Vehicle registration plates of the United States. In the United States, license plates[1] are issued by a department of motor vehicles, an agency of the state or territorial government, or in the case of the District of Columbia the city government. Some Native American tribes also issue plates. The U.S. federal government issues plates only for its own vehicle fleet and for vehicles owned by foreign diplomats. Until the 1980s, diplomatic plates were issued by the state in which the consulate or embassy was located. Vehicle registration plates of the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia