Louisiana Gearing Up For Its Bicentennial

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne has unveiled a new state license plate that will commemorate the 200th anniversary of Louisiana's statehood.

It's part of a two-year celebration planned for the state bicentennial, which is in 2012.

The state's regular license plate will be replaced from Jan. 3 until the end of 2012 with the new tag, featuring a green outline of the state on the left with a pelican across it. The bottom of the plate has the words "200 Years" bracketed by the dates 1812 and 2012.

Dardenne says events to commemorate the bicentennial will be held in every parish, along with several large celebrations around the state. A special commission is doing the planning, and Dardenne said Thursday he had no events yet to announce.