Text 13612, 146 rader
Skriven 2011-01-14 12:23:41 av Roy Witt (1:387/22)
  Kommentar till text 13585 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
Ärende: Taxes
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13 Jan 11 08:02, Robert Bashe wrote to Roy Witt:

 RW>> In California we had to register our vehicles every year, but every
 RW>> other year (two years) the vehicle was required to pass an emissions
 RW>> test while running on a dyno @ 25mph. The fee for that was as much
 RW>> as one year's worth of registration.

 RB> Here in Germany, you pay a "road tax" aka "registration" fee every
 RB> year, now based on the CO2 emission (previously on displacement).

I just registered my pickup on Monday. Can't find the sheet to read off
the particulars, but suffice to say that for $62, the 'road tax' is paid
until next January. For this amount, I get a sticker that is supposed to
be mounted to the windshield in the lower left corner (driver side).

 RB> That can be as little as maybe EUR 70 a year for a smaller, newer
 RB> car, up to maybe EUR 160 a year for an older, larger one.

 RB> Plus, every two years you are required to have the vehicle inspected
 RB> (frame, brakes, steering, lighting, corrosion and the like), plus it

We have that as an annual inspection here. Costs $14...and again, you get
a sticker that goes next to the registration sticker in the windshield.

 RB> has to pass an emissions test (cycle of simulated city, highway and
 RB> autobahn driving).

This is a requirement in Texas' big cities like Dallas, FW, Houston and
San Antonio. If you live within the county where the smog-check city is
situated, you get to do this also. In California, I found an exempt part
of San Diego county to register my vehicles and didn't have to have them
checked. I passed this info onto some close friends there, but some of
them already were taking advantage of the exemption.

 RB> However, the required results of the latter are not uniform for all
 RB> vehicles, but depend on the make and model of the car. The idea is to
 RB> catch cars that have higher emissions than those "standard" for their
 RB> make and model. This whole bank of tests costs around EUR 100
 RB> nowadays, every two years.

It didn't matter what vehicle you drove in California, smog checks were
mandatory, except for the diesel powered. Now I understand that diesels
also have to be checked. Oh, and 2 cycle engines (lawnmowers, motorcycles)
are no longer allowed there in emissions testing areas.

 RB> Oh, yes, and the test facility has to be certified to do this kind of
 RB> work, and you get a sticker on your rear license plate showing when
 RB> the next inspection is due

In California you didn't get an inspection sticker and you didn't get a
registration tag without passing the tests. (see earlier post that
explains the emisssions referee facility)

 RB> (color coded for the year, and with numbers from 1 to 12 like a
 RB> clock, with the number of the due month of the year straight up in
 RB> the 12 position, so that it's easy for someone (for example the
 RB> police) to see if you're overdue.

Texas has a way of showing a registration tag belongs to the vehicle it's
attached to. It shows the due month and year in fonts big enough to read
from an adjacent vehicle. The safety inspection sticker is also of this
nature. The tricky part is that the registration tag number is identical
to the last 8 numbers of the vehicles's VIN and the safety sticker has the
VIN and license plate number on it and signed by the inspecter. This way
you can't get away with putting them on another vehicle.

 RB> There's a fine if you're caught more than a month overdue, and if you
 RB> don't have the car inspected within a certain period of time past the
 RB> due date (I think three months), it will be automatically
 RB> de-registered by the authorities and can't be legally driven anymore
 RB> unless you re-register it with another license number and a new
 RB> inspection - quite a pain, and something to be avoided if possible.

A lot of people here forget to have their vehicles safety inspected and
the fine starts at $160...I've been caught in this once. You can get away
with delaying inspection by 1 month, if you work the system. My Z28 turned
garage queen hasn't been inspected since August of 08 and I always say to
myself when I take it out that I'll get it done as soon as I get back from
where I'm going. :o)

 DS>>> Where Maryland socks it to you is when you first title the car in
 DS>>> the this state.  At that time you pay a tax based on the value of
 DS>>> the car. Most states do not charge that tax if you previously paid
 DS>>> it in another state -- not so with Maryland.

 RB> There is nothing like this in Germany. If you buy a car new or from a
 RB> dealer, you pay sales tax, otherwise there's no tax on a used car
 RB> purchase, nor is there any kind of extra tax for a first
 RB> registration.

Every time a vehicle changes hands here, there is a sales tax collected
based on the selling price or a standard value set by the state if the
selling price isn't disclosed. In Texas that practice has been discarded
and they now charge sales tax on how much the standard value is in their
estimation. I'm not sure if this applies to $1 sales and/or gifts from a
relative.

 RB> Just the usual administration costs - you pay something like EUR 25
 RB> for a registration and require proof of liability
 RB> insurance (which the insurance companied routinely provide) and the

Proof of insurance is no longer required in Texas, as the insurance
company informs the state of your insurance status. A DPS (highway patrol)
or any other leo can pull up that info on the computer provided to him by
the state.

 RB> car papers (here we have what they call the "Brief", a fairly large,
 RB> folded paper with all the details of ownership - including previous
 RB> ownership - which is the actual title of the vehicle, and a smaller,
 RB> wallet-size folded paper you have to carry with you when you drive
 RB> the car - you NEVER carry the "Brief" around in the car).

That used to be the case here, but no longer. I have a business card sized
piece of paper with my insurance info on it, in case it's needed for a leo
without a computer or in case of an accident where a party involved has a
need to know. And a tow truck driver, if I need roadside services (flat
tire change, gas, tow, etc.) provided for by my insurance company.

 RB> Then you buy the number plates at a shop outside the registration
 RB> office (private, but naturally a government concession) and have them
 RB> stamped in the office -

Provided by and available at any state department of motor vehicles here.
AFAIK, no one else is authorized to have vehicle plates.

 RB> there's a sticker for valid registration and then the other for
 RB> inspection and emission testing and both are applied at the
 RB> registration office.

That's mighty nice of them to provide the labor for that. I have to do it
myself. Removal of the old one is a big pain.

 RB> The due date for the testing sticker is either two years after first
 RB> registration, if it's a new car, or is copied from the original
 RB> papers of the car if it's used. You don't get a "free" two-year
 RB> inspection-free interval just by re-registering a used car.

Nothing is free. You paid a huge price for a new vehicle, so you should
get a grace period for emissions purposes, IMO.

                R\%/itt

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