Personal vehicle registration discontinued effective today Published March 30, 2007 Courtesy of 1st SOSFS HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. -- Starting Saturday, Hurlburt Field and Eglin Air Force Base will no longer issue vehicle registration decals or require them for base access. Hurlburt and Eglin are among the first Air Force bases to implement this policy, but it is expected to eventually go into effect Air Force-wide. After close of business today, guards will stop checking for decals at the gates, and personnel may remove and destroy current decals unless they need to retain it for routine entry to bases still requiring them. Drivers should still be prepared to present their Department of Defense ID card for entry. Other credentials such as passenger IDs, proof of registration, proof of insurance and motorcycle safety cards will continue to be checked during random anti-terrorism measures and traffic stops. The driving factors behind this initiative are saving money and increasing force protection. First, discontinuance of vehicle decals will save the 1st Special Operations Wing more than $200,000 annually. Second, vehicle decals have become almost obsolete as a force protection measure. In fact, they are now arguably a detriment to security as they identify a person's Department of Defense affiliation. The expected inconveniences associated with this initiative should be minimal and temporary, affecting only those who enter other military installations which have yet to adopt this policy. In those instances, personnel without a decal may be required to obtain a visitor's pass. In cases where Hurlburt Field personnel reside on or routinely visit other installations still requiring decals, it is suggested they consider obtaining a long-term visitor's pass or register their vehicle on that base in accordance with local policy. It is recommended to contact each individual base prior to travel in order to verify local base entry requirements.