Registration Fees

[Wolfeboro_Baja]

Kracken, sorry but there is no indication in the RSA's that the boat's original MSRP is used in deciding boat fees or boat registration fees.

The value of the boat doesn't actually come in to play. The boat fee , RSA 72-A:3, assesses a fee based on the TYPE of your boat, length of your boat and age of your boat; nowhere does it ask for the actual dollar value. Yes, it looks like they're basing it on the value but they're doing it by looking at the type, size and age, not actual MSRP. Still, it looks like a tax, smells like a tax, but they're calling it a FEE!!

The registration fee, RSA 270-E:5, assesses a fee based solely on the length of your boat.

I just calculated my boat's registration fee using those two tables plus adding in the "pesky little fees" I mentioned earlier and it exactly equals what I paid to register my 25ft, 6 yr old boat this year.

Now, if you refer to these two old threads, Registration Increase?? What the He double hockey sticks! and Boat Fees to Double, you'll see there was a lot of discussion on this subject in the past. In the Boat Fees to Double thread, you'll find this link, Bill buoys lake patrol funds in the Citizen, where it mentioned in the fifth paragraph that the fees had not increased since 1979; that's 30 yrs, not 10. This article is referring to the first attempt to increase the boat registration fees which was later defeated and then re-introduced into HB2 as part of the budget. It was suggested in one of these threads (maybe both) that if the state had done moderate increases over the course of 30 yrs, the fee today might be the same as it is now with the sudden doubling. Just food for thought.......

(For all those Democrat-hating forum members here, please note the original bill to increase fees (as written about in the Citizen article linked above) was sponsored by a Republican!)

Every time a boater trades in their old tri-hull for a new Cobalt, the state cashes in.

Yes and no, but mostly no. For every type/size combination listed in RSA 72-A:3, there are 5 steps of decreasing fees. Buy a new boat and the Boat Fee is at it's highest. Once it reaches 4 yrs of age and older, the fee is at it's minimum for that type and size. If you keep your boat for 15 yrs and then trade up to a 5 yr old boat, guess what? You're not paying the fee for a NEW boat because it's already at the minimum fee for a boat 4 yrs of age and older.

Does any of this make sense to anyone? I know what I meant to say but sometimes I get off the track a bit.