CHP clamping down on drivers who avoid California fees

[Bullitt]

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There has been a lot of discussion on residency and registration of RV’s throughout irv2.com. I have researched state vehicle registration vs. Montana LLC and the like for a while now and have discovered articles on out of state registration enforcement in many parts of the US.

Below are excerpts from an article printed in the San Jose Mercury News from the Golden State where I currently reside. Although it mainly addresses passenger vehicles, it also applies to RVs. Be advised, if you are driving an RV with out-of-state plates here and are towing a toad with California plates (in CA), you may get stopped by the CHP.

“California's cheaters hotline on the Internet -- where one can anonymously report motorists they suspect are trying to avoid paying state registration fees or residents who register their vehicles at an out-of-state address -- brought in $3.2 million the past two years.”

“The Highway Patrol says that may be just the tip of the iceberg. The agency estimates California may be losing $10 million a year in revenue from drivers who fail to properly register their vehicles, so a couple of years ago it began focusing more on tracking down these scofflaws.”

“The program is dubbed CHEATERS -- Californians Help Eliminate All The Evasive Registration Scofflaws -- and lets people report them over the Internet.”

“Once basic information -- including the license plate number and make and model of the vehicle -- is entered at www.chp.ca.gov , the CHP uses use a nationwide computer system to track down the owners and send letters demanding they pay overdue fees. Don't pay and you could be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced to six months in jail.”

“No one is certain how many of the state's 33 million vehicles are properly registered, but police are convinced it's a major problem.”

http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_26102158/out-state-license-plates-chp-clamping-down-drivers
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[wa8yxm]

How long have I been telling folks the Montana LLC is a bad idea? (Truly, I forget).. Thank you for the support and evidence of how bad an idea it is.

[UFO Pilot]

California wants us to report our neighbors for registration violations, smoking violations, burning wood on no burn days and excess water usage. Sound familiar?? I don't cheat on these things but will be d@@med if I report someone.

[PyrateSilly]

For about 2 years we were quite legal with having MI plates on the vehicles while we were in CA. Thom was on a contract job that started off at 6 months then had 3 months added then a month ... well you get the idea. We were within our rights to keep MI and not change everything to CA. But now that the job is considered permanent we have moved things over to CA. So not everyone with plates from another state for awhile is breaking the law. We would have been quite upset if someone had us have to go thru a lot of paperwork for nothing with everything else that was going on.

[racersedge]

Originally Posted by wa8yxm

How long have I been telling folks the Montana LLC is a bad idea? (Truly, I forget).. Thank you for the support and evidence of how bad an idea it is.

its not a bad idea you just personally think it is. Done correctly its a great idea. If your DUMB enough to be Driving a MH with montana plates and pulling a Ca licenced tow vehicle you deserve to be caught I know A guy that did that BUT what saved him was he had a legal MONTANA DRIVERS LICENCE

[Bullitt]

Originally Posted by wa8yxm

How long have I been telling folks the Montana LLC is a bad idea? (Truly, I forget).. Thank you for the support and evidence of how bad an idea it is.

I think that the MT LCC is a bad idea for most. For a few, like racersedge's, example, it works and may even be a necessity (as long as you have a Montana DL I would think).

I have come to the conclusion that it would be best for me to purchase and register my new coach after moving to South Dakota as I don't mind paying taxes there since it will be my domicile. Right now, I pay almost a 10% sales tax due to the area I live in here in California. Spending $250,000 on a coach, for example, means that I would have to cough up $25,000 for taxes and registration. Since I'll be selling my home here and moving out of state, it is only fair that SD gets the tax dollars.

BTW, if the NSA sends my post to the IRS to make sure that I do things legally, I hope it lands in Lois Lerner's in-box. That way I'll have a chance that it'll get lost.
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[Bullitt]

Originally Posted by UFO Pilot

California wants us to report our neighbors for registration violations, smoking violations, burning wood on no burn days and excess water usage. Sound familiar?? I don't cheat on these things but will be d@@med if I report someone.

One of my favorite movies is Goodfellas. One of my favorite lines from the movie is "nobody likes a rat".
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[docj]

Originally Posted by Bullitt

I think that the MT LCC is a bad idea for most. For a few, like racersedge's, example, it works and may even be a necessity (as long as you have a Montana DL I would think).

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a MT LLC if you abide by the rules of the state you are a resident of. We have a MH with MT plates and are SD residents, but in most years the MH isn't even in SD for a day and when it is it is only there for a week or two. All states have rules about how long a vehicle can be in the state in the possession of a resident before it needs to be registered.

In the case of CA cited by the OP, the State is trying to crack down on CA residents who have RVs with MT plates but who really are keeping them in CA for much of the year.

Just remember there is nothing intrinsically wrong with having vehicles registered in states other than the one you are a resident of. Rich people do it all the time with cars registered where they have homes. The MT LLC is just a mechanism to permit a vehicle registration without the need to own property in MT.

The bottom line is that it is wrong (and illegal) to evade taxes, but it is foolish IMO to pay more taxes than necessary.

[racersedge]

I think (my opinion) its not so much the original sales tax that CA people object to its the registration/plates fees you pay each year there after.It a out and out rip off
in my home province we pay 7% sales tax but you never pay another nickel after that
IF+ when u use it You buy a plate $100 plus insurance. If it sits for say 3 years u pay nothing other than storage insurance

[tankcj]

Originally Posted by docj

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a MT LLC if you abide by the rules of the state you are a resident of. We have a MH with MT plates and are SD residents, but in most years the MH isn't even in SD for a day and when it is it is only there for a week or two. All states have rules about how long a vehicle can be in the state in the possession of a resident before it needs to be registered.

In the case of CA cited by the OP, the State is trying to crack down on CA residents who have RVs with MT plates but who really are keeping them in CA for much of the year.

Just remember there is nothing intrinsically wrong with having vehicles registered in states other than the one you are a resident of. Rich people do it all the time with cars registered where they have homes. The MT LLC is just a mechanism to permit a vehicle registration without the need to own property in MT.

The bottom line is that it is wrong (and illegal) to evade taxes, but it is foolish IMO to pay more taxes than necessary.

Well said!.....

[Bullitt]

Originally Posted by docj

In the case of CA cited by the OP, the State is trying to crack down on CA residents who have RVs with MT plates but who really are keeping them in CA for much of the year.

Just remember there is nothing intrinsically wrong with having vehicles registered in states other than the one you are a resident of. Rich people do it all the time with cars registered where they have homes. The MT LLC is just a mechanism to permit a vehicle registration without the need to own property in MT.

The bottom line is that it is wrong (and illegal) to evade taxes, but it is foolish IMO to pay more taxes than necessary.

California is one of those states that assumes you are avoiding paying taxes. I imagine, for the most part throughout the country, that if you're using MT LLC you're okay. However, if you live in a tax hungry state and park your MT LLC RV in the driveway of your S&B all the time, I would beware.

Rich people can do it because they have additional homes where they can register vehicles in various places. The Average Joe doesn't.

Bottom line is that if the government feels that you are doing wrong, whether they are right or not, they can go after a person with an unlimited supply of civil service attorneys. We have to pay for ours out of our own pockets. I know, I used to work for the government.

I agree. It is very foolish to pay more taxes than necessary. That is why we are selling the home, moving out of California, and going FT as soon as the DW retires.
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[Bullitt]

Originally Posted by racersedge

I think (my opinion) its not so much the original sales tax that CA people object to its the registration/plates fees you pay each year there after.It a out and out rip off
in my home province we pay 7% sales tax but you never pay another nickel after that
IF+ when u use it You buy a plate $100 plus insurance. If it sits for say 3 years u pay nothing other than storage insurance

Regular people in California, like myself, are generally not happy with paying 9.75% sales tax on everything (except groceries) new or used. After all, I'm no Donald Trump or (for our northern friends) David Thomson.

If I were to purchase a $250,000 DP today, CA registration for the year would be $2,321 (not including the CA Tire Fee).
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[Chuck 1935]

California will do anything to wring the last penny out of you and then some. Bless the folks that can avoid the rip off!

[JFXG]

Originally Posted by Bullitt

......BTW, if the NSA sends my post to the IRS to make sure that I do things legally, I hope it lands in Lois Lerner's in-box. That way I'll have a chance that it'll get lost.

Naw, won't get lost. It 'll be intentionally destroyed.