Front License Plate

[BigDogatPlay]

I'm active duty military and my state of residence is the same as my home of record and also where my vehicles are registered. I don't even have a CA driver's license.

Yeeep, and so long as you remain on active duty you can do that. And there would be no requirement to register your vehicles in California, unless you do something to officially establish residency here... like register to vote or get some form of California license, like an LTC or a DL.

what's the reasoning behind having a front plate anyway?

I guess the Legislature wanted us to be able to identify vehicles coming and going?

Who knows, really. The state has issued two plates for passenger cars and trucks for as long as I've been alive.

[Notorious]

I was told it was also to give radar guns a nice surface to aim and reflect off of.

[HeathenRifleman]

what's the reasoning behind having a front plate anyway?

They couldn't justify three plates, so they settled for two.

[Notorious]

Don't give them any ideas. Next thing you know it's going to be the front and back plate along with two side plates on the doors.