[C320-list] State proposes hiking boat fees (Maryland)

[Allan S Field]

Or The People's Republic of Maryland...

Allan S. Field
Sent from my iPad

On Feb 16, 2012, at 3:58 PM, "Jim Sweet" <jamesweet at frontiernet.net> wrote:

> Maryland should change its name to New York.
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> Jim Sweet
> TGIF (Thank God It Floats) 902
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Paul Rickman" <ilove2sail at verizon.net>
> To: <c320-list at catalina320.org>
> Sent: Thursday, February 16, 2012 3:53 PM
> Subject: [C320-list] State proposes hiking boat fees (Maryland)
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> They plan to raise the flush tax and add a frontage tax to your property
> taxes.
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> State proposes hiking boat fees
> -A A +A
> By 2016, fees would range from $50 to $700 depending on size of boat
> By Pamela Wood
> Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 11:21 am (Updated: February 16, 11:21 am)
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> It soon may become much more expensive to put a boat in the water in Maryland.
> The Department of Natural Resources is proposing drastic increases in boat registration fees to raise money for dredging, buoy maintenance, ice-breaking and other water projects.
> “We do not have sufficient funds to support the needs that we have for boating in Maryland,” said Bob Gaudette, who supervises boating programs for the DNR.
> Right now, boaters pay $24 every two years to register their boats.
> Under the proposal, the registration fee would be multiplied many times over, depending on the size of the boat.
> The fees would be phased in. By 2016, owners of small boats less than 16 feet would pay $50 every two years. Other fees would be $125 for boats from 16 to 32 feet, $250 for boats from 32 feet to 45 feet, and $500 for boats from 45 feet to 65 feet. For the largest boats of all — more than 65 feet — the fee would be $700.
> The fees would apply to boats that aren’t registered in Maryland, but are state-documented vessels because they are primarily used here.
> The proposal removes an exemption for sailboats that don’t also have motors. Under the proposal, all sailboats 16 feet or larger must register, whether they have a motor or not.
> There also would be a new, voluntary registration for canoes, kayaks and paddleboats that would cost $12 every two years. About 57,000 small, nonmotorized boats would be eligible statewide.
> Anne Arundel County would be the state jurisdiction most heavily affected by the new rules. There are 36,348 registered boats here, more than in any other county.
> If boat ownership stays steady at about 200,000 boats, the new fees would bring in $13.2 million per year. Right now, boating registration generates $2.1 million for the state annually.
> But even the proposed increases wouldn’t be enough to plug the boating services budget holes at DNR.
> The DNR’s boating programs get most of their money from the 5 percent excise tax paid when boats are sold.
> As the economy has faltered, boat sales have plummeted. That means less excise tax money going to the state.
> “I am completely at the whim of the marketplaces. If boat sales go up, I have money. If boat sales go down, I don’t have money,” Gaudette said.
> But the state still has a long list of boating-related projects. That list could soon get longer. The Army Corps of Engineers announced recently that it can no longer afford as many dredging projects.
> The state has about $15 million available for boating projects each year, but an annual list of $41 million worth of work.
> Even if the registration fee increases are approved by lawmakers, the DNR still will be short.
> “This gets us a little less than halfway there,” Gaudette said. “We’re not going for the moon here. We’re trying to cover the most critical of our projects.”
> The projects include maintaining thousands of buoys, markers and signs; maintaining 265 public boating channels; keeping channels free of ice in the winter; having Natural Resources Police conduct boating safety checks; removing abandoned boats; and maintaining public boating facilities.
> DNR officials acknowledged that they may face opposition. Lawmakers have been wary of fee and tax increases and many are already frustrated about Gov. Martin O’Malley’s proposal to apply the 6 percent sales tax to gasoline purchases.
> Olivia Campbell Andersen, the DNR’s lobbyist, said many boating fees haven’t been changed in decades. And the money would go to projects that will benefit those who pay the fees.
> “People recognize the great need for services that these funds provide,” she said. “We want to keep boating thriving and safe in Maryland.”
> The proposal is being introduced to the General Assembly today. A hearing has not yet been scheduled.
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