INDIANAPOLIS | Indiana drivers do not have to pay extra to sport the state's "In God We Trust" license plates, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Monday.

In a unanimous decision, the three-judge panel said the plates can be sold without requiring the $15 administrative fee the state charges on most specialty plates.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana brought the lawsuit last year on behalf Mark Studler, an Allen County resident who paid additional fees for his Environmental Trust license plate. The ACLU argued the "In God We Trust" slogan constituted a private message and therefore should be subject to the fee charged to other groups.

"We are not convinced that 'In God We Trust,' our national motto, can be categorized as a purely private message since the license plate can be construed to express either a public or private sense of national citizenship or patriotism in addition to a private expression of religious belief," wrote Judge Margret Robb, who was appointed to the appeals court by former Democratic Gov. Frank O'Bannon.

The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles charges a $15 administrative on all but a handful of the nearly 80 specialty license plates offered in Indiana. In most cases, another $25 fee is collected to raise money for an organization or cause linked to the plate.

Indiana legislators approved a 2006 law to begin offering the "In God We Trust" plates at the same price as the state's standard license plate.