Recreational boat fee increase considered by NC General Assembly

by D. Scott Croft on 13 Mar 2013 The North Carolina General Assembly is considering legislation that would significantly raise registration fees on recreational boats to grow revenue for coastal dredging projects. Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) is dedicated to preserving access to waterways but S.B. 58 places an unfair financial burden on recreational boaters while ignoring the responsibility of commercial fishing boats and for-hire charter fishing and head boats.

S.B. 58 will now go to the Senate Finance Committee and could be heard any day now. Please contact your State Senator today and respectfully urge them to vote 'No' on S.B. 58.

The Why - Boaters who solely boat on the state's lakes and rivers will be paying for projects they will never use.

- The fee for a 20-foot boat would jump 275% for a three-year registration. For a 40-foot boat a three-year registration will skyrocket 1025%.

- S.B. 58 would make the Tar Heel State the most expensive state in which to register a boat of its coastal border states.

The How - Please let your State Senator know that you oppose S.B. 58 as drafted and ask them to consider a more reasonable way to pay for dredging North Carolina's coastal inlets and essential waterways. Click here to take action or go or go to www.BoatUS.com/SB58 and click on 'Take Action.'

The Who - BoatUS is the nation's leading advocate for recreational boaters providing its over half-million members with government representation, services such as 24-hour on-the-water boat towing as well as roadside assistance for boat trailers and tow vehicles, feature-rich boat insurance programs, money-saving benefits and vital information that improves the boating lifestyle. Go to www.BoatUS.com.