However, according to the latest statistics released by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, 1,382,959 specialty license plates were sold in CY 2020, this is 8.1% (121,997) lower than the total specialty license plates that were sold in CY 2019 (1,504,956). As of November 1, 2020, there were 1,675,303 registered specialty plates, finally passing the 1,623,486 from October 2009, when the state dramatically increased the cost of purchasing a specialty license plate. In 2019, $34,898,951.00 was raised for the organizations represented by the 120 specialty plates, with 6 specialty plates each raising more than $1 million, 2 of which raised more than $2 million (University of Florida and Endless Summer) and the state collected an additional $20 million in state fees, administration fees and 'taxes' that are charged to those supporters of the specialty license plate program. Many are unique to Florida and famous artists and icons provide unique opportunities for Florida vehicle owners to accessorize their prize possessions, for less than the price of a decent car detail. Florida Specialty license plates support a wealth of causes. Since then, Florida's specialty license plate program has raised over $750 million for worthy causes and over 1.5 million Florida vehicles participated in the program in 2019. In Florida, it started when the state legislature created the Challenger specialty license plate, which 'launched' in January, 1987. The first mainstream specialty license plate was created for America’s bicentennial celebration in 1976, but their rise in popularity and numbers has spiked in the last 15 years.