(1) Unless otherwise specified in section 60-3,163.02, the provisions of this section apply to alternate license plates.

(2) The department shall design license plates to be known as alternate license plates. The design specifications of each type of alternate license plate are indicated in section 60-3,163.02. The design for each type of alternate license plate shall be selected on the basis of limiting the manufacturing cost of each license plate to an amount less than or equal to the amount charged for license plates pursuant to section 60-3,102.

(3) The department may adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out this section and sections 60-3,163.01 and 60-3,163.02.

(4)(a) Each type of alternate license plate shall be issued as either an alphanumeric alternate license plate or a personalized message alternate license plate.

(b) For an alphanumeric alternate license plate, the department shall:

(i) Assign a designation up to five characters; and

(ii) Not use a county designation.

(c) Personalized message alternate license plates shall be issued subject to the same conditions specified for personalized message license plates in section 60-3,118, except that a maximum of five characters may be used.

(5) The department shall cease to issue a type of alternate license plate listed in section 60-3,163.02 beginning with the next license plate issuance cycle pursuant to section 60-3,101 after the first year that such type of alternate license plate was issued by the department if the total number of registered vehicles that obtained such type of alternate license plate is less than five hundred per year within any prior consecutive two-year period.