I-Team: Out of state plates and how police weed out those evading CA vehicle registration requirements

COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) - It’s not cheap to license and register your vehicle in California, and those high costs are driving some people to register their cars in other states.

But what does this cost you and other drivers who do follow the rules? In an I-Team investigation, News Channel 3’s Jeff Stahl is getting answers about the real costs and what’s being done to ensure everyone who uses our roads helps pay for them, even if they have “Out-of-state plates.”

The CHP says the three most common reasons people neglect registering their car here in California include being unaware of registration laws, those who are unable to meet air pollution control laws, and those who intentionally evade paying registration fees and taxes.

Jeff Stahl asked some local drivers how many days you have in California to register a car before you get into trouble, if you’re moving here permanently?” Thomas Anderson moved here from Arizona and said, “They give you about 3 months.”

Sue Carlson of La Quinta said, “I think about 6 weeks.” Jeff responded, "The CHP says it's actually 20 Days." Carlson replied, ”20 days? Really? I’ll have to look at that again.” 

Registering your car will cost you. Initial registration fees for a new gas car range from $300 to $500 or more. And renewals are around $100 to $200 up. EV zero-emission vehicle owners also face an additional yearly $118 to $175 or more in "Road Improvement Fees" for 2020 and later models. That offsets the gas tax revenue the state loses on these vehicles. 

On the fees, Sharalee Sniff of La Quinta said, “I think that they’ve gone way too high.” Anderson said the fees are “Out of hand. I’m from Arizona, so I’m not used to paying that much.”

State lawmakers set California’s vehicle registration costs, often heavily influenced by the Governor. They fund the Department of Motorized Vehicles, transportation Improvement projects, and the California Highway Patrol.  But some drivers evade proper registration and licensing fees. 

“It’s not unusual?” Jeff Stahl asked California Highway Patrol Officer David Torres, “It’s not unusual" he replied. Torres says the agency has numerous open cases right now to investigate possible registration violations in the desert. 

We wanted to know just how many cases and drivers this involves and requested state records. The response from the CHP records division showed there were 91 cases last year here in the local CHP district, 93 letters sent, 103 cases resolved, and no citations were written.  

“They may stop someone for speed, notice their license plate is from out of state," Torres said, adding, "And from there, a line of questioning will begin to determine whether or not they live here, or are just visiting.” 

Like every other officer on patrol, Torres regularly checks license plates for potential violations. It’s not just the revenue. Registering and licensing your car in California also makes sure it complies with our environmental laws and standards.

“All California cars have to meet a certain emissions standard," Torres said, adding, "and when people bring vehicles from out of state, we don’t know if they meet those standards.” 

Each and every traffic stop allows officers to check the driver and vehicle’s status. Torres says registering your car in California for residents is simply a matter of fairness. “If someone is out of state and utilizing our roadways without paying their fair share, it’s not fair to the people that do pay their fair share,” Torres said.

How widespread is this? Seeking answers, the I-Team requested records from the CHP finding that, in 2025 statewide, the CHP mailed 24,339 letters to suspected offenders and issued 325 citations to drivers with out-of-state plates. There were nearly 32,000 reports. And people are watching. Some reports were submitted via the CHP’s website to identify suspected violators. It’s a thing. Sniff said, “Personally, I wouldn’t do that. I don’t know how they get by with that.” 

But simply seeing an out-of-state plate in the Coachella Valley doesn’t mean someone is flaunting the law. We have so many visitors and plates from other states during our winter months. Most are not required by state registration requirements. “But if you know for sure someone is working here, permanently moved here from another state, or has been here more than 6 months of the year, then it’s a good idea to report them so we can do the proper investigation,” said Torres. 

“We send them this letter, which essentially gives them the opportunity to respond to us, letting us know if the vehicle is permanently here or temporarily here,” Torres added.

Torres says this isn’t just about writing tickets, but about educating people first and giving them an opportunity to register vehicles without enforcement action. But a registration violation citation can be costly. There are DMV fees to pay, plus any documented back fees and penalties. 

“Yeah, we’ve had people who’ve had to pay two to three thousand dollars in back fees for just being here," Torres said.

The school drop-off line is one place where an out-of-state plate can stand out. A parent picking up a child at a local school with out-of-state plates could be enough to trigger a CHP investigation.

Here is a link to the CHP tipster hotline to report out-of-state vehicles that could be registration violators.

LINK--- https://www.chp.ca.gov/notify-chp/report-out-of-state-registration-violators2/