Boating News: MARYLAND'S $50 BOAT SLIP TAX SCUTTLED
| Boat Owners Association of The
United States (BoatU.S.) learned today that Maryland's proposed $50 annual
slip tax has been withdrawn by the Ehrlich Administration after hearing from
thousands of recreational boaters and marina owners. Amendments to Maryland
House Bill 495, introduced on behalf of the Maryland Department of the
Environment, were released late this afternoon with all "slip fee" language
removed. "Clearly, our 35,000 Maryland members, and thousands of other recreational boaters in the state and the marine industry made their voices heard," said BoatU.S. President Jim Ellis, a resident of Arnold, Maryland. BoatU.S. successfully argued that recreational boaters in the state would gain no direct benefits from the fee. BoatU.S. had strongly criticized the Governor's proposal to levy a yearly $50 fee and urged boaters to contact their state senators and delegates immediately to let them know of their opposition to the proposal. "One out of six boat owners in Maryland is a BoatU.S. member and as many as one of every two slip holders belongs to BoatU.S.," Ellis continued. The proposed purpose of Governor Ehrlich's so-called "user fee" was to protect wetlands, a concept the association clearly supports. However, it turned out that the funds were going to be used mainly to support the hiring of 34 additional Department of the Environment personnel to process wetlands permits for construction and mining purposes. |