Baldacci signs bill to raise snowmobile fees

[News_Reader]

Summary:
Maine snowmobilers will be paying higher registration fees. Gov. John Baldacci has signed into law a bill that increases the registration fee for residents from $33 to $35 per season. It directs that the $2 increase be credited to the state Snowmobile Trail Fund.

News Taken from Boston.com - Maine News (http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/)

[ewelin]

Gotta love that... residents pay $2 more... non-residents pay $20 more.

[Maine Sledder]

I don't love it ... we joined three snowmobile clubs in Maine this year ($75.00). Now with the increase in non-resident registration, 3 sleds X $20.00 fee per registration it will cost us $60.00 more. Do you think that people will be paying this increased registration fee and then join the clubs also? Not sure, this one I have to ponder a bit. Looks to me like the clubs are going to lose out on this one in the long run ... I think you'll find that the next thing you know there will be a mandatory club registration in Maine to make up for the loss of club membership due to increased non-resident registration fee.

[Offshore24]

The funny thing is I don't register in NH for just that reason. It costs too much for the amount of riding I would get to tdo there. Personally, I think they should make it mandatory to jopin a club. I joined 2 this year and I put $20 in the pot in Jackman, $10 in the pot in Island Falls, and $20 in the pot in Washburn. Hey, if you don't give em time working to keep the trails going the least you can do is give em money. We drop that much with no qualms on food, or oil, or sliders, carbides, belts, whatever. We grump about $20 or $60. If you can afford to travel and sled you can afford to pay for it. JMO

[Tynan19]

I can afford to pay but if they put in a madatory club that will be an extra 80 for 2 sleds. What ever it cost me almost 30 to get to your house.

[ewelin]

I just love how they stick it to out of staters with this increase, and honestly, I don't see it helping out much. You're going to get those cheapskates who think cause the reg went up they won't join a club and that's going to hurt.

[Offshore24]

I just love how they stick it to out of staters with this increase, and honestly, I don't see it helping out much. You're going to get those cheapskates who think cause the reg went up they won't join a club and that's going to hurt.

What's your worry bud? You buy a new sled, sell it to your FIL for $1, he registers it in ME for you and you ride it like you stole it.

[ewelin]

yeah, i'll def. have to talk my fil into that one... i just feel bad for all of my friends who still live in NH and don't have family in ME.

[Tynan19]

Steve, can I have a letter saying my sled has been stored at your house?

[Offshore24]

I'll buy it off you. Reasonable price. In fact, I used to store my friend's sled and trailer at my house all winter so we could ride anytime. You ride down your way so that wouldn't work, but the game's the same.

[Tynan19]

LOL. I would store it for $ a month and keep a beater here.

[Maine Sledder]

I just love how they stick it to out of staters with this increase, and honestly, I don't see it helping out much. You're going to get those cheapskates who think cause the reg went up they won't join a club and that's going to hurt.


"Cheapskate" "just feel bad for all your friends who still live in NH who don't have family in Maine" ???

It's not me I feel sorry for, because we are going to ride anyway, it's the clubs I'd be feeling sorry for ... We joined the clubs to help them put the extra money in for grooming if that's where they needed it, even offered to help do trail do on weekends, never got any newsletters, notices or anything telling us when to be there ... websites for the clubs we joined are never current with either trail work info or trail conditions. ... We didn't have to join the clubs, but we did. Now Maine is making us pay what we were voluntarily offering, the club will get our $15.00 anyway (because now it will come from the state instead of direct from us) maybe from both, still pondering this one.... Maybe in the end they will come out ahead - I can only assume not all the non-residents supported clubs in the areas they rode. With gas in Maine an average of .30 a gallon more for 87 octane (for the truck) and the 93 octane (for the sleds, all three of them) an average of .50-.60 a gallon more in Maine than NH the expense adds up when we trailer to Maine every weekend to ride - snow conditions permitting.

Yeah, we have family in Maine, but would I let someone else register my sled in their name ... not a chance, I'd be afraid they'd want to keep my sled :superhappy:and give me some old two-stroke "just kidding". But I"m sure there will be some non-residents that will do it.

Just have to adjust spending habits to always have money for snowmobiling .. ;)

[ewelin]

My problem with this increase is that of the $20 increase only part of it is going to the sport. There is still a chunk of the increase going to the general fund. I think it's pretty messed up how much money from Snowmobile registrations do not end up with anything to do with snowmobiling.

I do feel bad for a few of my friends, one of which registers 3 sleds in ME... he's just starting to get that Maine is better than NH, but he lives right by some trails so he can ride in NH a lot. He does 2-3 trips to ME and that's a large increase for 2-3 trips. If they had been fair and raised everyone's rates, I would have no issues with that. Out-of-staters now are paying 2.5 times what ME residents pay. Look at NH, with joining a club it's $48 for residents and $78 for non-residents and $63/$93 if you don't join a club. Maine is now $35 and $88, something is a bit lopsided here.

[Maine Sledder]

Regardless of the price increase I would still rather ride in Maine, far less restrictions, i.e., speed limits, 10 yo children riding can ride their own sleds accompanied by an adult, in NH you have to be 12, and twice as many miles of "usually perfect" groomed trails ... it's closer for us to drive 2 hours to those perfect trails in ME than it is to drive to northern NH and the lodging in ME is still considerably less than in northern NH ($45.00-$80.00 a night for a family of three in ME vs $110.00-$130.00 a night for a family of three in northern NH). It is still more expensive to ride a full season in NH than it is in ME, atleast for us it is. Will just have to watch and see how this plays out for the clubs.