Wisconsin is upping vehicle registration fees by 30 percent as part of its new budget, effective Jan. 1. According to the American Trucking Associations' State Laws Newsletter, the change will increase Wisconsin's fee for a tractor-trailer
combination at 80,000 pounds gross weight from $1987.50 a year to $2560.
The Jan. 1. effective date may cause Wisconsin some trouble within the International Registration Plan, which allows member states 120 days to accommodate another state's fee change, ATA notes.
The good news is that several tax proposals made by Gov. Jim Doyle were not part of the final budget, including fuel tax increases, diversions from the state transportation fund, and an oil company franchise fee (a fuel tax that would have been imposed at the wholesale level).
The budget package also includes Wisconsin's enabling legislation to participate in the Unified Carrier Registration Agreement, effective for 2007.
For more details, contact Tom Howells at the Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association, (608) 833-6800 or thowells@witruck.org.