Had the USCG snooping around yesterday

[Jaxfishgyd]

One of the guys here with military contacts posted this:

" Story I got from contacts was that it's part of the drug interdiction program, where they look for travel patterns. In other words.......wasting time of two valuable military personnel."

 

[Avenger]

CG already notifies the state where you're homeported. NY contacted me and asked for proof of taxes paid based on that. Which also proves that the state agency doesn't communicate within itself because I'd already paid the taxes. Taxes are state business, and I find it hard to believe that the feds would get involved.

While the photo ID thing sounds almost plausible, if it's happening no further North than Florida the drug/undocumented future democrat voter smuggling sounds more likely.

 

[rsmith]

Sounds more like they have nothing to do since boating activity and drug running have dropped off. Someone up the command chain probably came up with busy work to justify their existence.

 

[magnawake]

Also, we have a house with mailing address in Lexington, SC. I am home ported in Southport, NC because that is where I worked for three years while living on the boat. Then, I get a letter from Lexington county that stated they wanted their property tax that was due to them. I never even had the boat in SC. My mailing address on the document certificate was Lexington though. I had to prove to Lexington that I paid taxes on NC, as someone else posted (no big deal). It is a pain that you have people chasing you down to pay 6% luxury tax every year. Why would the CG be concerned about this? Somehow they are connected with the state. Maybe the state actively seeks out this information. I know the state is interested in collecting taxes and the CG is supplying the information. In Charleston, a friend was staying there for the winter and saw the CG with clip boards in hand, writing down information every week. When he moved slips, to closer to the bathrooms, they made a comment the next week (ah, ya moved closer huh). This is a funny way to watch the border. Seems like they are watching us.

 

[Freeebird]

I too would have to agree with those who say it has nothing to do with a sales tax agenda. Just another case of big brother watching. That aside, I guess I've misunderstood the NC sales tax issue and thought they were just following other states in requiring documented boats to be registered with the state as well.

It's been a long time since I bought a boat in NC, but sales tax on boats there used to have a cap of $300. Seems like that cap got raised to $800 in later years, but have they gotten away from caps altogether?

Tennessee still doesn't even title boats. Why that is, I can't tell you. You have to be very careful when purchasing a boat here as you basically have to take the seller's word that their are no liens against it. Even lenders are at risk of having their collateral sold out from under them.

 

[rsmith]

When they ban boating they want to know who you are and where your boat is. We're not part on the sustainability plan.

 

[magnawake]

I too would have to agree with those who say it has nothing to do with a sales tax agenda. Just another case of big brother watching. That aside, I guess I've misunderstood the NC sales tax issue and thought they were just following other states in requiring documented boats to be registered with the state as well.

It's been a long time since I bought a boat in NC, but sales tax on boats there used to have a cap of $300. Seems like that cap got raised to $800 in later years, but have they gotten away from caps altogether?

Tennessee still doesn't even title boats. Why that is, I can't tell you. You have to be very careful when purchasing a boat here as you basically have to take the seller's word that their are no liens against it. Even lenders are at risk of having their collateral sold out from under them.

Naw man, its not sales tax, its property tax. I think your correct about the sales tax, however the property tax is paid every year while located in that county. In SC, the 6% property tax can be a chunk of money. In NC its not near that bad. Of course in Fla. there's a big sales tax up front but no property tax. When I lived in Charleston, the boats in the marinas all had DE, FL, TN and other non property tax states. Since then they have cracked down on tax jumping boats and the last time I was there passing through hardly no boats had other states of home port on the fantail. Whatever the state is doing, its working and bringing in millions in tax revenue.

 

[Artzco]

Naw man, its not sales tax, its property tax. I think your correct about the sales tax, however the property tax is paid every year while located in that county. In SC, the 6% property tax can be a chunk of money. In NC its not near that bad. Of course in Fla. there's a big sales tax up front but no property tax. When I lived in Charleston, the boats in the marinas all had DE, FL, TN and other non property tax states. Since then they have cracked down on tax jumping boats and the last time I was there passing through hardly no boats had other states of home port on the fantail. Whatever the state is doing, its working and bringing in millions in tax revenue.

I bought my boat in FL and paid the tax and it is registered there. Florida is 6% but it is capped (law changed in 2010) at $300,000 ($18,000) and the local county 1% option is capped at $5,000 ($50.00). If I kept my boat in my home state of GA, it would be taxed same as a house with local, school & fire taxes.

 

[Freeebird]

I can't imagine that they think our Hatts are much of a threat. They're too slow to catch up with anything other than a sailboat, and the hulls are so strong that explosives in them wouldn't have any effect on anything outside the boat.

You mean like this?

 

[Freeebird]

Sounds more like they have nothing to do since boating activity and drug running have dropped off. Someone up the command chain probably came up with busy work to justify their existence.

Nah, it's recon before they implement the Afforable Boat Act.

 

[Tim Powell]

iF ANY OF YOU THINK THEY ARE NOT WATCHING U YOU ARE CRAZY. Some time we go sord fish fishing which requires about 2000 feet of watter and at night time about 40 miles off shore. There is only a few of us that went but almost each time we went the cc was in the inlet and stoped us and boarded. I belive because we came closs to freighters and long liners we were stoped. We would driff fish and stay in one spot a lot and in 2000 feet of watter with no ledges it was strange. I just wonder if the eye in the sky isn't sending out signals to the bigger cc stations. The cc station in Morehead has a big disk on the roof....The disk could be for anything....

 

[captddis]

They have been tracking boats since the 80's war on drugs. More than once running all day to the Keys and not seeing anyone, then finding the CG waiting for us at Bullard bank.

 

[saltshaker]

They have been tracking boats since the 80's war on drugs. More than once running all day to the Keys and not seeing anyone, then finding the CG waiting for us at Bullard bank.

About 10 years ago I was looking at buying a 52C Hatt from the USCG. They had four of them that were custom built by Hatteras for the USCG. These boats had a radar the size of a washing machine in the salon. Primary purpose of these boats was to blend in while tracking potential drug runners. They had common names on the transom. Boat I was looking at was named Pair a Dice.

 

[captddis]

About 10 years ago I was looking at buying a 52C Hatt from the USCG. They had four of them that were custom built by Hatteras for the USCG. These boats had a radar the size of a washing machine in the salon. Primary purpose of these boats was to blend in while tracking potential drug runners. They had common names on the transom. Boat I was looking at was named Pair a Dice.

I know that and when I mentioned it here I was called a liar. When I worked for the Hatt dealer, they brought them in for warranty work. They told me that they tracked the boats . I was tod there were four of them. The names were like Valiant, Liberty etc. And yes they were brand new not siezed boats. Although they were brobably bought with drug money.

 

[saltshaker]

I know that and when I mentioned it here I was called a liar. When I worked for the Hatt dealer, they brought them in for warranty work. They told me that they tracked the boats . I was tod there were four of them. The names were like Valiant, Liberty etc. And yes they were brand new not siezed boats. Although they were brobably bought with drug money.

I never knew that and if I saw that thread I would have confirmed you were correct. Those boats were brand new ordered from the factory by the USCG. 2 were in Fl, 1 in TX and 1 in NY/NJ. When I was looking at them all four were up for auction. Tom Slane knew of them as did others I spoke to at Hatteras.

 

[Boatsb]

Tim I know why they stop you. With that accent they thing your making shine out there.

Buddy I can understand your being stopped when out floating all night. They think your there to meet someone. Pulled into ft pierce once and watched the cg, dea and local guys strip a guy's ocean to find a few hundred pounds of coke mixed in with the fish. I think they had watched him in the lanes for the night and figured it out.

 

[Canuck Dennis]

Maybe it's budget time and they have not spent it all yet, time to blow it out otherwise cutback ?

 

[Tim Powell]

Tim I know why they stop you. With that accent they thing your making shine out there.

Buddy I can understand your being stopped when out floating all night. They think your there to meet someone. Pulled into ft pierce once and watched the cg, dea and local guys strip a guy's ocean to find a few hundred pounds of coke mixed in with the fish. I think they had watched him in the lanes for the night and figured it out.

You getting me and freebird mixed up!

 

[Boatsb]

You getting me and freebird mixed up!

No the bird is really the grey goose fairy.

 

[TopHattandTails]

Next they will be putting a gps lockator on the boat. It is kinda like the health care deal feds already got out money info, location, personel info, now they gona get out medical info. What is left???
Bamahas looking better all the time you can come visit 5 to six months out of the year.

the locator is called the I-68 transponder for your vessel...each passenger gets a I-68 paper clearance, plus the vessel gets the transponder. Not sure if it's GPS or just RFID... same thing that trucks get.