The heavy hand of government censorship is at it again. This year, Ohio officials silenced hundreds of car owners looking to make a statement with custom license plates. The state's Bureau of Motor Vehicles has denied 891 vanity plate requests so far this year, and some of them are pretty hilarious.
Some of the most popular rejected plates include crude sexual references, drugs and drug use, various bodily functions, body parts, and variations of your favorite obscenities. Ohio drivers seem to have a keen distaste for children, with "FKMKIDS," "FTHMKDS," "FKDEMKD," and "FTHMKDZ" all submitted—and denied—in 2025.
There are also classics like "69LMAO," "MILFMBL," "CRNKHOG," "STROKEN," "POOPSAC," and "DE5 NUTS," which couldn’t get past the BMV’s puritan eyes. Ohioans also submitted requests for "SGMA BLZ," "LIL BLZ," "ICYBLZ"—which is different than "ICEBLZ"—and good ol’ "BLUEBLZZ."
Not all of them were wholly inappropriate. The BMV also rejected more vanilla requests like "VW MAFIA," "KILR WGN," "KIABOY5," "WRXXX," and "SLO LM4O." It also seems the department has a strong dislike of DIYers, denying "HANDYAF," "FIXXXER," and "IFIXSHT."
The list also includes "BOOBEE," "8OO8YS," "8OO8IE5," "BOO8ES," and "4BOOBIE," which are different from "8008 S" and "8008EZ." Good try, Ohioans. "BOO CHIT," "TJ B1TCH," "PHKN L8," "FAST ASS," "IL CUT U," "SLOWHOE," "L8 AF AGN" are also top-tier requests that were, sadly, denied.
If you look through the full list, which is available here from The Columbus Dispatch, you’ll also see requests for "IHAVE2P," "HV2POOP" and "GTAPOOP." Someone outright wanted "HEROIN" as their plate, and there were submissions for "ON METH," "LUVMETH," and "NO METH."
At least someone in the state is on the right track in life.
Despite every Americans' First Amendment right to free speech, states may regulate license plate designs and may deny offensive or confusing requests such as these. It’s an issue some people are fighting, labeling it as government censorship.
A person in Tennessee asked the US Supreme Court to hear their case against the state for denying them their vanity plate. However, the high court this week declined to hear their appeal, allowing the state to reject their "69PWNDU" personal plate.
Sources: The Columbus Dispatch, The Enquirer
