WARREN, Maine — License plates have been manufactured by the state prison system for nearly 90 years.
But that could soon end.
A bill, LD 2179, is before the Maine Legislature that makes numerous changes to motor vehicle laws. One part of the proposed legislation is to eliminate the requirement that license plates be produced at Bolduc Correctional Facility in Warren.
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows testified at a Feb. 24 hearing before the Maine Legislature’s Transportation Committee that the building and equipment where the plates are manufactured are antiquated. She said if legislators feel passionate about continuing production at Bolduc, there would need to be money spent for significant upgrades to equipment and the building.
“This may be the time for the prison to get out of the manufacturing of plates,” Bellows said.
The state contracted last year with Waldale Manufacturing Limited of Nova Scotia to produce the new plates that are replacing older plates during the past year. Bellows said that had to be done because the existing facility could not handle producing a million or more plates in a year.
Bolduc continues to manufacture specialty plates.
“This is important to ensure business continuity as we assess the choice between making capital improvements to the plate shop building and machinery at Bolduc or beginning the process of closing it and moving to a contracted model over the next couple of years,” she told legislators.
The plate shop was moved to its current location in the 1980s and has been making plates since. Before that, plates were made within the former Maine State Prison in Thomaston.
There are on average five to seven Bolduc residents working at the plate shop at any time, the Corrections Department stated. In 2025, the plate shop produced more than 440,000 plates.
She said that the Department of Corrections convinced the plate supervisor who had retired to return to help oversee the manufacturing of plates at Bolduc, because no one else knew how the old equipment worked.
In written testimony, the Department of Corrections said it supports the removal of the statutory requirement, so that the secretary of state can have the latitude and discretion to control license plate manufacturing.
Rep. Wayne Parry, R-Arundel, said he had a real problem with the proposal, noting the Legislature had agreed to fund $7 million last year to pay for new plates with the understanding that other plates would continue to be produced at Bolduc. He said that $7 million could have been used to modernize operations.
Bellows questioned whether spending millions on modernizing the facility would be the best use of taxpayers dollars.
This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.
