Who REALLY paid for my boat registration? ;)

[MikeP]

Yesterday I went to register our 1980 53MY and its dink here in MD.

The grand total for both boats was 10 bucks...and that $10 was for the 53; the 11ft Avon/motor was free. I was in/out of the Annapolis office in less the 8 minutes. I was pretty darned impressed but, at the same time, I was thinking that it MUST cost the state a lot more to process the paperwork on two boats than the ten bucks I paid them.

So...I'm trying to figure out how MD can pull this off. Is it done by magic? Strings and mirrors? Perpetual motion machines? They certainly can't cover their operating costs with boat registration fees so maybe they are taking all the money from some other pot. Whoever owns that pot, I appreciate their support for boaters.

 

[jim rosenthal]

The Hatteras Owners' Forum paid for it. We subsidize all boat registrations and taxes worldwide, as a courtesy to our peerless colleagues in boating.

Not. I have no idea, but it's certainly nice to hear about a tax that isn't an item for complaint.

 

[Canuck Dennis]

Ships registration here in Canada is a free service, covered I guess by the Fed, sales tax one pays on original purchase, , re registration in each Province is not required or allowed for documented boats, if the vessel is not documented then each Province can charge tax but only if the vessel is registered to,an address in that Province, i.e. no tax or fees for travelling through or long term stays.

 

[TROUBLE]

Shhhhhhhhhh. Now you did it

Art

 

[saltshaker]

Sounds like a waste of tax dollars to register the boat. I would think it would make more sense to either remove the registration process for a documented vessel or charge a fee that would cover the cost of registration.

 

[Boatsb]

$6.25 per year for mine.

 

[captddis]

In FL after 30 years the registration is only a few dollars as it is considered an antique. Maybe tax and spend MD felt bad and offers the same thing.

 

[bobk]

Mike, quityabitchcin or they will find a way to tax you again.

Bobk

 

[SeaEric]

It's no secret that I am a Maryland boat dealer. For several years I have marveled at how cheap the fees are here. The title fee is a ridiculous $2. The 2 year state registration is $24. Under 16 ft or under 7.5 HP is free. As Mike mentioned a 2 year Doc Vessel sticker is $10. My boat dealer license is $25 per year. All these fees have not been changed in decades and are by today's standards too low. When the Governor and his crew thought it was a good idea to raise the fees, instead of a nominal increase, the fees they proposed were fantastically high. As you would expect the proposed increase went nowhere.

In a moment of (for them) reverse insanity, the Maryland legislature did vote to cap the boat excise tax at $15,000. similar to what Florida ($18,000 cap) did a few years back. The Maryland cap takes affect July 1, 2013. Florida's experience has shown a marked increase in boat tax revenue.

The answer is that the Maryland 5% boat excise tax subsidizes the yearly fees.

 

[bostonhatteras]

Enjoy it while you can! Massachusetts required a $15.00 bank check just for a replacement registration sticker for the tender!

 

[smoothmove]

In Illinois we are not bothered with such existential questions. 150 bucks. Good for 3 years though.
Eric

 

[tellico]

And further to Eric's point - If you have not paid the 5% tax, either direct (or prove by reciprocity), they will catch you. So let the clerks process $x dollar charges all day, and say nothing. It's one man and one office you will be dealing with on that 5%. Been there, done that.