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Boston, MA
With Hasbro heading to Boston, R.I. lawmakers want to scrap the Mr. Potato Head license plates
Local News
A new bill would end the specialty plates that raise money for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.
Mr. Potato Head may soon be peeled off Rhode Island license plates. After Hasbro announced last year that it was shifting its headquarters to Boston, state lawmakers are now pushing a bill to retire the toy-inspired tags, framing the effort as an overdue act of “self-respect.”
As first reported by the Providence Journal, Rhode Island Reps. Brian Newberry and Thomas Noret co-sponsored a bill introduced last Wednesday to remove the specialty plates.
“Hasbro abandoned the State, causing untold economic harm and loss of tax revenue,” Newberry said in a statement to Boston.com on Friday. “There is no reason we should be advertising their products on our license plates.”
He continued, “It may seem trivial compared to many other things, but it’s a matter of self-respect.”
Neither Noret nor Hasbro returned a request for comment Friday.
According to the legislation, drivers who already purchased the special plates would be allowed to keep them. However, they wouldn’t be allowed to transfer them to a new car or a family member’s vehicle.
Half of the proceeds from the plates, which say “Help End Hunger” and cost $40, goes to the Division of Motor Vehicles and the other half to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.
According to the food bank’s website, the state began issuing Mr. Potato Head plates in 2002. Designers made the plates to commemorate the toy’s 50th anniversary. The food bank has raised more than $50,000 from them since.
The food bank was not pleased to hear that the Legislature may soon scrap the plates, saying in a comment to Boston.com on Friday that the demand for emergency food assistance reached historic highs last year.
“With additional federal cuts and policy changes on the horizon, the need will be greater than ever moving forward,” Kate MacDonald, a food bank spokesperson, said. “Every source of support for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank — and by extension our network of 137 member agencies — matters.”
MacDonald said the nonprofit is eager to engage key stakeholders to explore opportunities to maintain this source of income.
Rep. Newberry said he’d be open to a different license plate design, suggesting “perhaps the Big Blue Bug or Del’s Lemonade or some other RI institution.”
