Nick Reisman reports at New York State of Politics that a day after Andrew Cuomo's office announced new fees for new mandatory license plates, the Governor claimed the new license plates were need to work "with E-Z Pass." Currently, many cars successfully use E-Z Pass, but Cuomo said, “Nobody wants to pay any money for anything. I don’t want to buy new plates, either. It’s 10 years. You need a plate that works with E-Z Pass.” Car owners with the blue-and-white plates, from more than a decade ago, next year will have to purchase new plates for $25, with an extra $20 fee to keep the current license plate number. The state estimates it will take $75 million from taxpayers with the change. In 2009 then-Gov. David Paterson floated a similar plan to charge motorists to switch their plates that eventually sunk. “This is a regurgitation of the same, uninspired idea that Governor David Paterson proposed a decade ago, one that failed thanks to strong opposition from County Clerks and Republicans in the state Legislature,” said Senate Minority Leader John Flanagan, a Republican. “It’s also the latest example of Albany’s nickel-and-diming of hardworking middle-class taxpayers.” Democratic Sen. David Carluccci agreed. “Hardworking New Yorkers should not be burdened with this unnecessary cash grab by the State,” he said. “A required fee to replace old license plates is arbitrary and does not in any way benefit drivers.” Read more about this story at New York State of Politics.