Washington State will impose excise tax on aircraft

This EAA Legislative Alert is being sent, as a member service, to all EAA members in Washington.

The Washington state House of Representatives just introduced House Bill 3176 that will impose a .005% (1/2 percent) excise tax on all aircraft in the state of Washington.

The bill also states that if you elect to register your aircraft in another state and that state does not have a excise tax or is less than this new WA excise tax you will be required to pay the difference.

This addition to the state of Washington tax law is in Sec. 1002 of this bill and it reads:
Sec. 1002. RCW 82.48.020 and 2000 c 229 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

1.An annual excise tax is imposed for the privilege of using any aircraft in the state. The amount of the tax is five-tenths of one percent of the taxable value of the aircraft, as determined under section 1003 of this act.

2.The tax imposed under this section must be collected annually or under a staggered collection schedule as required by the secretary by rule.

3.Persons who are required to register aircraft under chapter 47.68 RCW and who register aircraft in another state or foreign country and avoid the aircraft excise tax imposed under this section are liable for the unpaid excise tax. A violation of this subsection is a gross misdemeanor.

4.The department of revenue may, under chapter 82.32 RCW, assess and collect the unpaid excise tax imposed under this section, including the penalties and interest provided in chapter 82.32 RCW.

5.Except as provided under subsection (3) of this section, a violation of this chapter is a misdemeanor punishable as provided in chapter 9A.20 RCW.

As proposed in the bill, this new excise tax will take the place of the current annual registration fee. So if you own a single-engine fixed wing airplane worth $100,000 your current annual registration fee is $65.00. Under the proposal in the bill that annual fee (excise tax) would jump to $500.00.

For comparison purposes in the state of Washington - non-commercial boats pay an annual excise tax of .005%, but only if the boat is over 16' in length ; and if you own a car you only pay an excise tax of .003% at the time you purchase the car, but not annually. Information from the Washington State Department of Revenue web site.

EAA is urging you to take immediate action.

Contact your state legislators to protest this new and unwarranted excise/property tax on your aircraft.
Washington State House of Representatives - http://www.leg.wa.gov/house/Pages/default.aspx
Washington State Senators - http://www.leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/Pages/default.aspx
The time to act is NOW...
Post your feedback or comments on this thread on Oshkosh365.
Randy Hansen, EAA # 590242
Government Relations Director
EAA - The Spirit of Aviation - www.eaa.org
Phone: 920-426-6103 or 6522
Fax: 920-426-4885 or 6560
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I have reposted this from a different source because it is important.