Mississippi Motorcycle Tag cost

[Fast Eddie]

Just received an e-mail from the local Blue Knights in Columbus, MS warning about the increase cost of motorcycle tags in Mississippi. For anyone who wants to attend, here is the info:

"The cost of motorcycle tags have more than doubled since September 1st and if you haven't renewed your tag yet you will be shocked. Call your local tax collector and find out how much your next tag will be and if it seens unfair to you then come to the meeting.

Come hear State Representative John O. Reed speak and answer questions regarding the high price of Motorcycle tags and what can be done about it.

When: January 10, 2005 @ 7:00 p.m.

Where: Harley Davidson of Central Mississippi
3509 I-55 South, call 601-372-5770 for directions"

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I did a Google search on this and found a letter published in the Clarion Ledger on:

http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pb...512130304/1009

The writer says that to renew his motorcycle tag, the one year cost was $ 732.84

Eddie

[Fxsts103ci]

$732 for one year?

mine is $14 at least somethin is cheap in NY..

[Fast Eddie]

Looks like the Mississippi motorcycle tag increase of 200-300% may be history. Evidently it was the sole work of our public servants on the the MS Tax Commission, who does not even mention it on their own web page. Can't blame them, they're probably hiding under their desks these days. Since the increase was put in place, there was a lot of lobbying by the biker community, and the MS House passed a bil to repeal it. If the senate goes along, this unfair increase will be history. We have to always be vigilant, seems like there's always someone out to get us.

http://www.wreg.com/Global/story.asp?S=4414333

If the link expires, here is a cut & paste of it. Unfortunately there is no date on the article, but I believe it is very recent. I called my representative about a week ago this was still in committee.
------------------------------------------
Mississippi House Votes to Decrease Motorcycle Tag Price
JACKSON, Miss -A bill that cleared the Mississippi House Wednesday would roll back the price of license plates for motorcycles and certain types of trailers.

The state Tax Commission increased tag prices this past year for motorcycles and for trailers without motors, such as camper trailers or horse trailers that can be pulled by a truck.
Some motorcycle owners say their tag price doubled or tripled since September. About 35,000 motorcycles are registered in Mississippi.
The bill moves to the Senate for more work. A similar proposal passed the Senate earlier this month, but has been held for further debate.
The two chambers must agree on a single bill before anything can go to the governor.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistribute

[Ed Y]

The number of the bill is HB1494 and it's presently in the Ways and Mean Committee.

I think we all need to hold our breath. No guarantees is gonna get out of committee and get passed yet. And the governor still has to sign it too. Long way to go.

[hdmarsh77]

Originally Posted by Fxsts103ci

$732 for one year?

mine is $14 at least somethin is cheap in NY..

It costs us $15 for a two year tag here in WI. Although I think the cost has gone up a couple of dollars recently. I can't imagine paying $732 a year!

[Ed Y]

Originally Posted by hdmarsh77

It costs us $15 for a two year tag here in WI. Although I think the cost has gone up a couple of dollars recently. I can't imagine paying $732 a year!

Obviously that's a lot considering the much lower cost of car tags. Hopefully the legistature will get it fixed. You've also got to remember tags are a major source of income at the local level considering the rest of the tax base, sales tax, property tax, etc, is pretty low.

[Fast Eddie]

Originally Posted by Ed Y

Obviously that's a lot considering the much lower cost of car tags. Hopefully the legistature will get it fixed. You've also got to remember tags are a major source of income at the local level considering the rest of the tax base, sales tax, property tax, etc, is pretty low.

About 2 years ago I moved from Alexandria VA to Columbus, MS and am amazed at the cost of living here. For example, property tax (per $ 100K) in Columbus is about the same as Alexandria although I thought that MS would be much cheaper. Alexandria is in Fairfax County VA, which is among the highest cost of living areas in the nation. However real estate here is much cheaper. Many other things cost about the same (gas, food, an oil change, or going to the Dentist). I believe that Sales tax and car tags are cheaper in VA and the hated car tax was being phased out when I moved. So basically cost for everything is the same except for real estate. I am constantly amazed that many cost in Columbus MS are about the same as the Washington D.C. area.

That being said, the thing that bothers me most about this is that the increase was established by nameless people on the MS State Tax commission. We don't vote for these people, or (most of us) don't even know who they are. Yet the state legislature and senate (who we do elect) are having to go through a lengthy, difficult public process to reverse what the Tax Commission did behind closed doors. Oh, did I forget to mention that the Gov. has to also get involved.

By the way, today I did an internet search about this, which led me to a newspaper article that quoted someone who got a bill of $900 for a 1 year motorcycle tag. They said that the bike was being put on E Bay to sell.

[Ed Y]

It's a county-by-county thing in MS. I've got 20 acres with house, barn, shop shed and only had to pay about $250 a year in taxes. Now that I'm 65, I pay exactly 0. I've lived all over the country in my years in the Navy, including VA, and really don't remember any area that's much cheaper to live. I also don't pay any state income taxes but that's also because of military retirement.

Doesn't VA still have the personal property tax?

Here's the canned answer from the MS DMV People:

The personal property tax on motor vehicles in Mississippi is based on
the assessed value of the motor vehicle. The assessed value of a motor
vehicle is based on the original suggested retail price multiplied by an
applicable percentage rate for the age (model) of the motor vehicle.

We have a computer system package of assessments identified by the VIN
for automobiles but have never had that information for motorcycles.
Now we do. The property tax on motorcycles is now being based on the
original suggested retail price of that particular bike rather than an
arbitrary figure from an assessment schedule. In the past any
motorcycle over 1200 CC's was based on an original purchase price of
$7,840. Obviously, this is way out of line.

Back in 1995 when legislative tag credit was allowed on
automobiles/pick up trucks, it was not extended to motorcycles.

The last sentence is the change that is pending in the legistature now.

[Fast Eddie]

Ed Y

Several years ago, the VA legislature phased out the car tax over a period of several years, and by the time I moved ( 2003), about half of it was gone. Of course the politicians were predicting total disaster if it was phased out, but obviously the public hated the tax and wanted it eliminated.

What I ws trying to say in my previous post is that property taxes here in Columbus seem really high to me - since they are about the same as Alexandria, (where they are very high). That in my opinion, is absurd, because wages in the Wash. D.C. area are light years higher than wages here. For example, I now make about 1/3 of what I was making in Alexandria. Most other things like food, tires, etc, are about the same, except real estate, which is much cheaper here.

I just can't understand why the state & local goverment here need so much of my money. Evidently they just decided they need more and think that motorcyclist are an easy target. Let's hope they were wrong.
Eddie

[Ed Y]

Eddie,

High taxes has got to be a local thing, I guess. I talked to some ABATE people in Jackson, MS a couple of weekends ago. The bills are in the MS legislature to rectify the bike tag businees. They seemed to be pretty confident that they will get passed. It may all depend on the governor though.

[LuckyDawg41]

I'm in Hancock County, MS and just renewed the tag on my 04 FXSTI and it was $240.00. Last year it was $182.00. I don't recall how much it was in 04.

[Ed Y]

Originally Posted by LuckyDawg41

I'm in Hancock County, MS and just renewed the tag on my 04 FXSTI and it was $240.00. Last year it was $182.00. I don't recall how much it was in 04.

Yep, sounds like they got you a little bit but not as bad as some.

[Fast Eddie]

Here is a link to a news channel WTOK in Meridian, which cites two specific cases. One guy's tag went from $300 to $640 and in another case the tag renewal went from $300 to over $900.

http://www.wtok.com/news/headlines/2232156.html

I also found another link
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pb...512130304/1009

which is a letter to the editor for the Clarion Ledger. The writer states that his 1 year renewal cost was $732.94. Remember - this is for a motorcycle, not an 18 wheeler.

My own renewal was in November - evidently just before the increase was put in place. But unless something changes, next Nov my cost could be anywhere from $400 to $600. Extremely absurd since bike riders are not exactly in Donald Trump's tax bracket, and this is even more true in Mississippi.

[thrasher]

That's just wrong. It kind of makes you wonder whose pockets all this extra revenue is going in....

thrasher

[Fast Eddie]

My buddy, who has an 02 Road King, just got a bill of $377 for tag renewal.

Eddie