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Titles for Collector Cars

So Where Are We on ObtainingTitles For Collector Cars??

The Department of Motor Vehicles has a regulationfor issuing titles for our collector cars. That regulation has not been updated to reflect the change made to the State Statutes via Public Act 14-130 which changed the requirement that model year 1981 and older vehicles don’t need titles to vehicles 20years old and older don’t need titles. The current DMV regulation has a couple of provisions in it that make it prohibitive to obtain a title for our collector cars. We believe these provisions are unnecessary and will be looking to work with DMV to change their regulation. The two main problems we see with the current DMV regulation is that if we don’t have a valid out-of-state title for our collectorcar we will need to post a surety bond for our cars inaccordance with Section 14-176 of the state statutes.The process to post a surety bond is cumbersome, cost-prohibitive, and discourages us from obtaining titles for our vehicles. We feel that this provision should not be necessary if our collector vehicle has been registered in the State of Connecticut for a reasonable period of time (say 3 to 5 years). We would like the need to post a bond to be waived if that is the case. The second provision we have difficulty with is the requirement to submit a sworn statement that the vehicle has been maintained or restored to a condition that substantially conforms with the original manufacturer’s specification. We believe we should be able to obtain a title for our motor vehicles,regardless of whether they have modifications. I am drafting a letter to the DMV to request them to revise their regulation to make it easier for auto hobbyists to obtain titles for their motor vehicles, and offer to discuss the issue with them. While our past efforts have not been successful, it is worthy of further pursuit. 

Legislative Report

Legislative Report Dave Bajumpaa

The 2022 State Legislative Session began on February 9th and will end on May 4th. In ,l preparation for this upcoming session, we have retained the services of Hughes and Cronin Public Affairs Strategies to monitor legislation related to the antique auto hobby, as we have done in previous sessions. In this monitoring capacity, Hughes and Cronin informs us of the pending legislation. We report to you on any legislation potentially impacting the hobby and ask you to contact your legislators and help get favorable legislation passed, and unfavorable legislation
defeated (i.e., a "grass roots" approach).
At the present time, we are not aware of any legislation introduced in the 2022 Legislative Session that will adversely impact the antique auto hobby.The table included in this newsletter summarizes the current status of bills related to the hobby and other transportation related matters of interest that have been introduced in the legislative session to the date that I am writing this report (March 26, 2022).

HOUSE BILL 5043
House Bill 5043 is a bill proposed by the Governor’s Office related several issues. One issue is the assessed value of motor vehicles used to determine the  property tax the cities and towns can levy. THE BILL PROPOSES TO MAINTAIN THE MAXIMUM $500 ASSESSMENT ON ANTIQUE, RARE OR SPECIAL INTEREST MOTOR VEHICLES (SECTION 12-71(b) OF THE STATE STATUTES AND IS NOT ADVERSE TO THE HOBBY. The bill does propose to change how the cities and towns determine the valve of our regular motor vehicles for property taxation. For assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 2023, the following schedule of depreciation shall be applicable with respect to motor vehicles based on the
manufacturer's suggested retail price of such motor vehicles:
Age of Vehicle Percentage of Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price
Up to year one Eighty per cent
Year two Seventy-five per cent
Year three Seventy per cent
Year four Sixty-five per cent
Year five Sixty per cent
Year six Fifty-five per cent
Year seven Fifty per cent
Year eight Forty-five per cent
Year nine Forty per cent
Year ten Thirty-five per cent
Year eleven Thirty per cent
Year twelve Twenty-five per cent
Year thirteen Twenty per cent
Year fourteen Fifteen per cent
Years fifteen to nineteen Ten per cent
Years twenty and beyond Not less than two thousand dollars
If this proposed bill is passed, the assessed values of our regular motor vehicles will be determined as a percentage of the original Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) based on the age of the vehicle. As an example, looking at the table above, a 7 year old vehicle with a MSRP of $25,000 would be valued at 50% of the MSRP or $12,500. (And your property
tax on that vehicle would be $12,500 divided by 1000 times the mill rate in your town. If the mill rate in your town was 30, then your annual tax on that vehicle would be 12.5 times 30 or $375.) A 15 to 19 year old vehicle with a MSRP of $25,000 would be valued at 10% of the MSRP or $2,500. A 20 year old or older vehicle with a MSRP of $25,000 would be valued at no less than $2,000 (although the bill is not clear regarding whether the 10% MSRP continues to apply to 20 year old and older vehicles or a lower percentage MSRP applies).This simplifies the valuation of our regular motor vehicles. It should also eliminate towns assessing vehicles greater than 20 years old that are not considered subject to the maximum $500 assessment at an outrageously high value. So I view this as a good thing. Should this change be adopted, as noted in the public hearing testimony, the amount of revenue the towns collect from motor vehicles in total
will go down. Of course, the downside of that is the relative property tax burden on real estate and businesses will increase. This is a bill we will be keeping an eye on as the Session progresses. 

SENATE BILLS 9, 30 AND 325
Currently in the state, the maximum mill rate towns can apply to motor vehicles is capped at 45. Towns with higher mill rates than 45 are supposed to receive reimbursement for revenues lost from the State. These bills propose to reduce the maximum mill rate municipalities can apply to motor vehicles to approximately 29 or 30 mills. While vehicles the property tax collected by towns with a mill rate between ~30 and 45 would get a lower tax bill on their
vehicles. However, that would mean if more towns would be reliant on reimbursement from the State for the lost revenue. In public hearing testimony, smaller towns have voiced their opposition against these bills.

OTHER BILLS:
Senate Bill 333 is the annual DMV “clean up” bill. The bill is not adverse to the hobby. Senate Bill 79 proposed to make any surcharge imposed on the registration of a motor vehicle, including the "Federal Clean Air Act fee" and the "Passport to the Parks Fee", optional for the registrant, and limit the amount of the fee for the registration of a motor vehicle to the actual cost incurred by DMV to process such registration. This bill was referred to the Transportation Committee and is dead. House Bill 5422,  mong other things, requires decibel level testing for motor vehicles during emissions testing. As noted above, we currently do not anticipate any legislation adverse to the antique auto hobby to move forward in this session. As always, we will remain vigilant, and immediately report to you on any legislation impacting the antique auto hobby.