Vehicle Registration Fees Increase Under Gas Tax Bill

The cost of vehicle registrations would go up as part of a proposed gas tax bill being considered by the Maryland General Assembly.

The bill, which is scheduled for a final vote Friday in the House of Delegates, contains an increase of $3.50 on the cost of registering a vehicle. The additional money would be allocated to the Maryland Emergency Medical System Operations Fund. The fee increase would increase revenues by about $17 million each year.

The fees will go to offset an increase in salaries offered to pilots for the Maryland State Police. The agency has 11 vacancies within its 50 pilot positions, according to the review of the bill.

The base pilot salary under the proposal would increase to $70,000 and the plan would cover the cost of hiring 20 additional pilots based on a review provided by the state Department of Legislative Services. Maintenance technicians would see their base salary increase to $60,000 as part of the proposal.

Since July 2007, the agency has received 194 applications. Of those, 72 applicants declined interviews and another 11 declined job offers, citing low salaries.

A similar increase was cut from a budget bill last year.