Supporters of Ducks Unlimited and North Dakota State University may begin buying special logo license plates, if showing them off is worth $25 annually.

For Ducks Unlimited members, it is a chance to build camaraderie and raise money for conservation programs, said Charles Franzen, of Dickinson, who is the organization's volunteer state chairman in North Dakota.

"The money gets put right to the ground, right here in North Dakota, for conserving wetlands and habitat," Franzen said. "Not only for ducks. The most important thing is all wildlife."

For each plate, $15 of the $25 extra annual fee is returned to the sponsoring organization for use in its programs. North Dakota State's cut of the money will be spent on student and outreach programs, according to NDSU's alumni association.

Gov. John Hoeven, state Department of Transportation director Francis Ziegler and officials representing Ducks Unlimited and NDSU held news conferences in Bismarck and Fargo on Tuesday to unveil the new plates.

The Ducks Unlimited plate shows DU's national logo, which is an outline of a duck's head. NDSU's logo features a bison and the school's letters, in gold with green trim.

The logo is positioned to the left of the numbers on North Dakota's most common license plate design. They may have up to five characters. The Lewis and Clark-style plate cannot have the logo, Ziegler said.

The DU and NDSU plates are the first issued since the North Dakota Legislature made them easier to obtain. Before, an organization was required to sign up at least 400 members before the Department of Transportation would issue the logo plates.

During the 2007 session, lawmakers reduced the minimum number to 50, and required the organization to pay a $1,500 fee up front. Ziegler said the money covers the cost of the specially printed reflective materials used on the plate.

Linda Butts, the Transportation Department's deputy director for driver and vehicle services, said Dickinson State University is also attempting to recruit enough plate buyers to justify a special logo plate.

Jeff Essler, a North Dakota regional director for Ducks Unlimited, said about 75 members have signed up so far to get plates. DU has about 7,000 members in North Dakota, and Essler said he hopes the organization can raise $4,000 to $5,000 annually from its cut of license plate sales.

NDSU's alumni association, which has been promoting the sale of the plates, said about 120 people have signed up to buy one so far.

The logo plates cost $25 above the normal cost for a regular plate. A vanity plate with a logo costs another $25. The fee must be repaid every year the plate is renewed.