OK, here's something to try - have your boat documented by the Coast Guard. This might only work for the 20 foot boats, because it relies on a volume measurement (5 net tons, not to be confused with weight or displacement).

If the boat is documented, you must affix the documentation number permanently to the hull (here it would be fine on the beam) and have the boat name and hailing port displayed. But you won't need the state title and numbers. You may still need a state sticker with a nominal yearly state fee. Renewing the documentation each year is free.

My F-27 is documented, here in the MD the situation is as described above. I was too lazy to go through the calcs, but the formulas are on the USCG site. This would be kind of a funny way to get around this...