Agency ordered to pay fees in ‘IM GOD’ license plate case

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has to pay more than $150,000 in legal fees for a man who won a lawsuit allowing him to put “IM GOD” on his license plate. News outlets report a judge ruled this week that the state agency must pay attorneys’ fees and court costs in the case. The ruling came in a case filed by Ben Hart, who set out to get the Kentucky plate in 2016. The transportation department denied the request on the basis it violated anti-discrimination guidelines. A federal judge ruled in November that “vanity plates” are protected by the First Amendment.