Virginia Correctional Enterprises (VCE) operates a license plate manufacturing plant at the State Farm Enterprise Unit in Powhatan, Virginia. The Tag Plant is the sole manufacturing facility for all license plates distributed throughout the Commonwealth. The Plant manufactures all Diplomatic plates utilized throughout the continental United States for the U.S. Department of State/Office of Foreign Missions.

The Commonwealth of Virginia has authorized well over 400 different graphic designs for standard, handicapped and personalized license plates for the citizens to choose from. The Plant manufactures over 3 million vehicle license plates per year. With 135 DMV Centers and Selects, as well as many different Dealer locations to distribute plates to, Virginia Correctional Enterprises operates its own warehouse to manage the logistics of distribution. It is in the Tag Warehouse that some very high moving volumes of license plates are stocked and staged for distribution. It is from this warehouse that all personalized plates, as well as many standard production plates, are paired with decals and mailed directly to the customer.

VCE’s Tag Plant employs, on average, 50 incarcerated men and is in direct line with the Department of Corrections Re-entry Initiative. The men are trained on equipment and machines to manufacture a quality license plate as well as computer skills in Microsoft Office for Inventory/Production Control, Shipping and manufacturing reporting. This in turn gives them real and tangible skills for future employment upon release.