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bostonshopper OP t1_jdfp2sk wrote

Reply to comment by TheCavis in Sorry for the million posts! The RMV has postponed my license suspension for 60 days while they "investigate." Thanks u/SchminksMcGee for suggesting contacting the local news, it's working! And they're digging into the craziness of anyone who drives in MA for 30 days being required to dual-register. by bostonshopper

Really great question. So, the RMV supervisor I've dealt with, as well as a lawyer I emailed with, both indicated that simply operating a vehicle 30+ days in a year could be enough to trigger the registration requirement, regardless of having liability insurance. Which, I agree, makes zero sense. So maybe it's still a communications error? But I very clearly don't fall under any of the other provisions, didn't do any Uber or lending my car or anything.

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hmack1998 t1_jdg0oa8 wrote

Yeah it really sounds like idiots in the RMV not understanding their own laws with a law targeting NH which doesn’t require insurance

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theurbanmapper t1_jdgc7la wrote

So it sounds like the lawyer agrees with the RMV that they were reading the law correctly. I’ve said it elsewhere, but what irks me about the local news stories I’ve seen about this is that the framing has been that the RMV and the RMV person you had your appeal with are being said to be in the wrong, when it is the legislature that may be in the wrong. I know this doesn’t mean a lot to you as an out of stater who feels aggrieved by a kafkesk bureaucracy, but I’m irked at the local news who should know better deciding to run with the easy “local bureaucrats are assholes” angle rather than the nuanced “Massachusetts legislature is a horrible corrupt mess that can’t do anything behind its veils of secrecy “ angle. Signed, a local bureaucrat who has to do things that I don’t love, but don’t get to make decisions on.

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becausefrog t1_jdgqcyx wrote

*Kafkaesque

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theurbanmapper t1_jdhb3kf wrote

I was going to roll my eyes at you for correcting someone on the internet, then I realized that all I’ve been doing until Reddit knows what hour all day was being a pedant (m)asshole, and also that my spelling mistake was quite novel. So I’ll say thank you instead. 😁

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masspromo t1_jdh8ml2 wrote

Exactly, the RMV operations and customer service could be vastly improved except for the fact that the only people that can enact real change are our legislators. Now if there were a chance that they might lose an election because their constituents were fed up they might do their job but for the most part, they have no opponent to fear. Bill Weld made it a priority and in a short time, the registry experience vastly improved. Instead of voting out these useless people who give us terrible public transport and RMV we vote D and head to AAA to try to get service.

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TheCavis t1_jdfvzqn wrote

I'd trust the lawyer's advice over my personal reading, but the "except" clause seemed so clear and it's so easy to accidentally admit to something seemingly innocent that I assumed that's what happened.

I'm really curious what the cost of actually registering would be. It'd be a major hassle for you (as I believe all of this needs to be done in person in MA), but the RMV appears to have a supervisor, the press office, and the ombudsman's office working to deal with an issue that amounts to a $60 plate fee. If that's all we're looking at, it makes sense to cut bait and issue a stern warning at this point. Maybe even a wag of the finger and a "now don't you do this again!"

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homesnatch t1_jdhnokk wrote

> $60 plate fee. If that's all we're looking at, it makes sense to cut bait and issue a stern warning at this point.

They'd also be on the hook for excise tax which is $25 per $1000 of value (based on a percentage of MSRP based on how old the car is)

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TheCavis t1_jdicwnf wrote

The MA excise tax page indicates it's less than that:

> If you own any motor vehicle that has been registered for less than a full calendar year, you will pay the excise based on the entire month when you registered that vehicle, as well as for the remaining months of the year.

> The abatement amount granted to taxpayers who have moved out of Massachusetts, transferred vehicle ownership, or had their vehicles stolen is based on the number of months remaining in the calendar year after the month the last eligibility requirement for the abatement takes place.

So, they would be charged excise tax starting the month they arrived and given an abatement for the months after they left. Even if we assume it's two calendar months, that's $4.16 per $1000 of vehicle value. His car model isn't specifically mentioned in the news story, but I think the picture is a Mazda 3 that's at least six years old (the headlights on post-2018 models are sharper and further down below the hood). If my guess is correct, then the excise is $4.16/$1000 times an excise calculation of 10% (more than 5 years old) of less than $30k original MSRP?

All I can imagine at this point is an accountant walking around the RMV yelling "With the plate fee, this bill comes to dozens of dollars. Dozens!"

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