These Plates Will Always Have A Helping Of Potatoes Money-Raising University Plates Get Negative Reaction From Panel

School spirit’s fine, but don’t mess with the potatoes.

That was the message university boosters got when they proposed special Idaho license plates that would feature a university logo and a slogan such as “Go Vandals.”

The problem? That slogan would replace “Famous Potatoes.”

Roger Sieber, a lobbyist for the Potato Growers of Idaho, said, “Anything that takes famous potatoes off is not a good idea.”

Never mind that some special Idaho license plates already lack the potato slogan.

“You’ve just got to stop somewhere, and we think this is a good place to stop,” said Jerry Deckard, a former legislator and Sieber’s lobbying partner.

Idaho’s universities want the plates as a fund-raiser for scholarships. Twenty-five dollars of each plate fee would go to the school.

After hearing the opposition, Sen. Evan Frasure, R-Pocatello, proposed a new version of his bill that would require the “Famous Potatoes” slogan stay. The plates would be red, white and blue and feature university or college logos or slogans as well as the potato pitch.

“We had to make a compromise, and it works best for everyone,” said Ben Rush, University of Idaho student body lobbyist.

Rush pointed out that the Potato Commission gives the University of Idaho $800,000 a year just for research at the college of agriculture.

Said Frasure, “These plates don’t look quite like what I envisioned, but many times the art of politics is the art of the possible.”

A member of the Legislature’s budget committee, Frasure said Idaho’s colleges and universities need all the funding sources they can get. They may not even get as much in state funds next year as they got this year, he said.

The proposal now goes to the full Senate for a vote.

, DataTimes