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

[David Nolte]

Hi Warren,

Great info - thanks!

The one thing I'm not clear on is what does the "IN 31 LENGTH" mean? Is the "31" just a weird character in the string and should just be ignored, so that it reads "Vessel 16 feet to less than 32 feet in length"?

Thanks,

David Nolte
Beach House #4


On Feb 17, 2012, at 3:20 PM, Warren Updike wrote:

> The bill, HB 1307, in its first reading appears as follows:
> (II) VESSEL 16 FEET TO LESS THAN 32 FEET IN 31 LENGTH	$75
> (III) VESSEL 32 FEET TO LESS THAN 45 FEET IN 33 LENGTH $125
> I believe the article in the Baltimore Sun got it wrong saying that the 32'
> fee would be $250.  I'll contact the paper to verify that.
> 
> The C320 data sheet from 1993 says LOA is 32' 9" so that puts us in the $125
> category.
> 
> I don't see in the bill that the time period has changed, so that would be
> every two years, and increase from $12/yr to $62.50/yr; more than a 400%
> increase.
> 
> All in all, I can't complain. $12/yr is a ridiculous fee for the pleasure of
> boating on the country's finest estuary.  The problem is that this is just
> one new tax being proposed by our money grabbing state of Maryland.  
> 
> The "People's Party" is showing its true color and that color is green.
> 
> Warren & Pattie Updike
> 1994 C320 #62 "Warr De Mar"
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Nolte [mailto:dcnolte at mac.com] 
> Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 10:11 AM
> To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
> Subject: Re: [C320-list] State proposes hiking boat fees (Maryland)
> 
> Good point Irv, does anyone know whether we would fall into the $125 or $250
> category, all of the article state:
> 
> 16 feet to 32 feet: $125.
> 32 feet to 45 feet: $250.
> 
> Which are we? It doesn't say "less than" or "greater than"
> 
> Anybody know?
> 
> Maybe I will apply for exemptions for boats more than 20 years old - hard to
> believe, but mine will be there soon!
> 
> David Nolte
> Beach House #0004
> 
> 
> On Feb 17, 2012, at 9:17 AM, Irving Grunes wrote:
> 
>> Isn't our C320 only 31 ft 11 and1/2 inches long to get under the 32 ft 
>> limit? .:0)) Irv Grunes
>> #851
>> 
>> 
>> On Fri, Feb 17, 2012 at 8:59 AM, Allan S Field
> <allan.field at verizon.net>wrote:
>> 
>>> 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.
>>>> 
>>>> 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)
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> They plan to raise the flush tax and add a frontage tax to your 
>>>> property taxes.
>>>> 
>>>> 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)
>>>> 
>>>> 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.
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>> 
> 
> 
>