The unusual pattern in which validation stickers were properly placed on this base warrants separate consideration. Sticker location sites are illustrated here with plate no. 612-288, and listed in the table above. One of the more interesting topics relative to the 1968 baseplate, and D.C. multi-year baseplates in general, is the proper location of 1970 (red, dated “71”) and 1971 (blue, dated “72”) stickers. They belong in the middle of the plate, not in any of the corners. The default location for stickers of both years is below the dash, although on plates with both stickers the red sticker goes below and the blue one above, which is to say that the later sticker should not cover the earlier one.

The first of the two, the red 1970 (“71”) sticker, should properly appear below the dash, and our experience has been that this is practically always the case. If the plate is a natural (such as no. 816-809), one issued for a new registration during the April 1970-March 1971 registration year, there should be no 1969 (yellow, dated “70”) sticker in the upper right corner, and the final three digits in the serial number of the red sticker should match the final three digits on the plate. (More about this last point here.) If the plate is not a natural, but rather an older (1968 or 1969) registration that was renewed for the 1970 registration year, the red sticker should still be below the dash but the last three digits of the sticker serial and plate number will not match.

The blue 1971 (“72”) sticker may be found above or below the dash depending on whether the plate is a renewal (no. 618-822 shown above is an example) or natural (such as no. 871-994). Many collectors have incorrectly assumed that all blue stickers should be placed above the dash because that's where it is seen on renewed plates (which includes most plates owned by collectors today). To corroborate this, shown below are sticker placement instructions provided to motorists to whom stickers were provided (by mail or at a DMV office) as they renewed their registrations in early 1971. In these cases it is clear that above the dash is the proper site for the blue sticker on plates being renewed, which is to say those upon which the sticker was not affixed by the DMV.

On natural plates, however, those first issued during the 1971-72 registration year, in most cases the sticker was placed (presumably by the DMV before issuance) below the dash. The final three digits of the sticker serial should match the final three numbers on the plate. This sticker location is also used on sample plates, corroborating our assertion that it is the correct display site for natural plates even though the blue sticker will be correctly placed above the dash if there is already a red sticker below it.