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Plates Might Preserve Budget, But Not L.I. Sound

Monday, Sep 14, 2009 | Updated 8:45 AM EST

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Fess for "Preserve the Sound" license plates will no longer go toward programs benefitting Long Island Sound.

The state is dissolving a program set up for conservation and education projects on Long Island Sound, which was paid for by people who paid more for specialty license plates adorned with lighthouses.

The "Preserve the Sound" plates have been available for the past 16 years and the fees have generated almost $5 million in Long Island Sound projects.

This summer, the state's budget deficit prompted state lawmakers to eliminate the program. You can still get "Preserve the Sound" plates, but beginning Oct. 1, the Department of Motor Vehicles will send money from the license plates to the state's general fund.

Officials are doing the same thing with money collected from the sale of the state's "Greenways" and "Wildlife Conservation" license plates.