An Act to Enhance Trail Revenue
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0114
Committee: Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Sponsors: LUNDEEN, MARTIN, McGLOCKLIN, SAMPSON, YOUNG, KNEELAND
Amends: 12 MRSA §7824, 12 MRSA §7854

Legislative Document 
No. 114 
H.P.122 
House of Representatives, January 21,2003 
An Act to Enhance Trail Revenue 
Reference to the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife suggested and ordered 
printed. 
7Jl~ 
/h.1JlIJ£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative LUNDEEN of Mars Hill. (BY REQUEST) 
Cosponsored by Senator MARTIN of Aroostook and 
Representatives: McGLOCKLIN of Embden, SAMPSON of Auburn, YOUNG of Limestone, 
Senator: KNEELAND of Aroostook. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2001, c. 254, 
§1, is further amended to read: 
2. 
Fee. 
Except as provided in subsection 2-B, the annual 
snowmobile registration fee is as follows: 
A. 
For 
residents, 
snowmobile 
owned 
by 
commencing on July 1st 
B. 
For nonresidents: 
$~9~. 
The 
registration 
a 
resident is valid for 
one 
of each year; and 
for 
a 
year, 
(1) 
~eFEY Seventy-five dollars for a 
~-eeBseea~ive-aay 
3-consecutive-day registration. 
A person may purchase 
more than one 3-day registration in any season; 
(2) 
~i~ty-~ive Ninety dollars for a 19-eeBseeative-aay 
10-consecutive-day registration. 
A person may purchase 
more than one 10-day registration in any season; and 
(3) 
SiHEy-~ive One 
hundred dollars for 
a 
seasonal 
registration. 
The registration for a 
snowmobile owned by a nonresident 
must specify the dates for which the registration is valid. 
Five dollars from each registration fee in this subsection must 
be transferred to a special fund administered by the Off-Road 
Vehicle Division of the Bureau of Parks and Lands within the 
Department of Conservation. 
The funds must be used to assist any 
entity that has a snowmobile trail-grooming contract with the 
bureau in the purchase of trail-grooming equipment. 
Sec. 2. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§2-B, as amended by PL 1999, c. 
403, §35, is further amended to read: 
2-B. 
Antique snowmobile registration fee. 
A resident who 
owns a snowmobile that is more than 25 years old and that is 
substantially maintained in original or restored condition may 
register that snowmobile under this subsection as 
an antique 
snowmobile. 
An antique snowmobile registration authorizes that 
snowmobile to be operated only for the purpose of traveling to, 
returning from and participating in an exhibition, parade or 
other event of interest to the public or for occasional personal 
use. 
The fee for an antique snowmobile registration is $~9 ~. 
An antique snowmobile registration is valid until the ownership 
of that antique snowmobile is transferred to another person. 
Upon the transfer of ownership, the new owner may reregister that 
snowmobile as an antique snowmobile by paying the $~G ~ 
antique 
snowmobile registration fee. 
The registration fee for an antique 
snowmobile is allocated according to subsection 3, paragraph A. 
Sec.3. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§2-C is enacted to read: 
C. 
Rebate. 
A person who is a member of a snowmobile club 
may apply to the commissioner within 10 days after registering a 
snowmobile for a rebate of $25. 
If the commissioner receives 
satisfactory evidence that the person is a member of a snowmobile 
club, the commissioner shall issue the rebate to the applicant. 
Sec. 4. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§3, 1[A, as amended by PL 1997, c. 
24, Pt. I, §9, is further amended to read: 
A. 
Thirty five dollars of each snowmobile registration fee 
for residents or $10 in the case of a registration fee of 
which $25 has been rebated pursuant to subsection 2-C is 
credited to the Snowmobile Trail Fund of the Department of 
Conservation, 
Bureau of Parks 
and Lands. 
The 
rema~n~ng 
revenue from the registration fee for residents is credited 
as follows: 
(1) 
Twenty-two percent is credited to the General Fund 
as undedicated revenue; 
(2) 
Fifty-two percent is credited to the Snowmobile 
Trail Fund of the Department of Conservation, Bureau of 
Parks and Lands; and 
(3) 
Twenty-six percent is annually distributed to the 
municipality of the owner's residence as shown on the 
owner's 
registration 
certificate, 
except 
that 
in 
unorganized territory, 
26°'0 is annually distributed to 
the county of the owner's residence as shown on the 
owner's registration certificate and credited to the 
unorganized territory fund of that county established 
in Title 30-A, section 7502. 
Sec. 5. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§3, 1[B, as amended by PL 1997, c. 
513, §2, is further amended to read: 
B. 
Thirty-five dollars of each snowmobile registration fee 
for nonresidents or $10 in the case of a registration fee of 
which $25 has been rebated pursuant to subsection 2 C is 
credited to the Snowmobile Trail Fund of the Department of 
Conservation, 
Bureau of Parks 
and Lands. 
The 
rema~n~ng 
revenue from the registration fee for residents is credited 
as follows. 
(1) 
Eighteen percent is credited to the General Fund 
as undedicated revenue. 
(I-A) 
Seven percent is credited to 
the 
Snowmobile 
Enforcement Fund established under section 7824-G. 
(2) 
The remainder is credited to the Snowmobile Trail 
Fund of the Department of Conservation, Bureau of Parks 
and Lands. 
Sec. 6. 12 MRSA §7824, sub-§8, ~D, as amended by PL 2001, c. 
471, Pt. E, §3 and affected by §4, is further amended to read: 
D. 
Whoever 
obtains 
an 
original 
resident 
snowmobile 
registration after March 31st T 
may pay $6+TS9 $72.50 and 
receive 
a 
registration 
covering 
the 
remainder 
of 
the 
registration period plus one additional year. 
Sec. 7. 12 MRSA §7854, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2001, c . 690, 
Pt. A, §13 and affected by §18, is further amended to read: 
3. 
Fee. 
The annual registration fee for an ATV is $1+ ~ 
for a resident and $69 tlQ for a nonresident. 
Sec. 8. 12 MRSA §7854, sub-§3-A is enacted to read: 
3-A. Rebate. 
A person who is a member of a snowmobile club 
may apply to the commissioner within 10 days after registering an 
ATV 
for 
a 
rebate 
of 
$25. 
If 
the 
commissioner 
receives 
satisfactory evidence that the person is a member of a snowmobile 
club, the commissioner shall issue the rebate to the applicant. 
Sec. 9. 12 MRSA §7854, sub-§4, ~A, as amended by PL 2001, c . 
690, Pt. A, §14 and affected by §18, is further amended to read: 
A. 
Thirty-five dollars of each registration fee or $10 in 
the case of a registration fee of which $25 has been rebated 
pursuant to subsection 3-A 
is credited to the Snowmobile 
Trail Fund of the Department of Conservation, 
Bureau of 
Parks 
and Lands. 
After administrative costs, 
all other 
revenues 
received under this subchapter are credited as 
undedicated revenue to the General Fund except that 50% of 
those 
revenues 
is 
credited 
to 
the 
ATV 
Recreational 
Management 
Fund of the Department of Conservation. 
The 
Legislature shall appropriate to the department in each 
fiscal year an amount equal to the administrative costs 
incurred by the department in collecting revenue under this 
subsection. 
Those administrative costs must be verified by 
the 
Department 
of 
Conservation 
and 
the 
Department 
of 
Administrative and Financial Services. 
The department shall use a portion of the revenue dedicated 
to the 
ATV 
Recreational Management 
Fund for 
an 
ATV 
law 
enforcement grant-in-aid program to assist law enforcement 
agencies other than the Bureau of Warden Service. 
Sec. 10. 12 MRSA §7854, sub-§7, ,C, as amended by PL 2001, c. 
690, Pt. A, §15 and affected by §18, is further amended to read: 
C. 
Whenever 
there 
is 
a 
change 
of 
ownership 
of 
an 
all-terrain vehicle for which a registration has previously 
been 
issued, 
the 
new 
owner 
shall 
apply 
for 
a 
new 
registration and shall pay the regular $11 fee 
~9F-£e6~aeBE6 
aBa-$~9-~eF-B9BFe6~aeBE6 specified in subsection 3. 
Sec. 11. 12 MRSA §7854, sub-§7, ,D, as amended by PL 2001, c. 
690, Pt. A, §16 and affected by §18, is further amended to read: 
D. 
After March 31st, a person may pay $61..-69 $56.25 for 
residents and 
$4~T+§ $78.75 for nonresidents and receive a 
registration covering 
the 
remainder 
of 
the 
registration 
period plus one additional year. 
SUMMARY 
This bill: 
1. 
Increases the registration fees for snowmobiles and for 
ATVs, which include off-road motorcycles, by $35; 
2. 
Allows persons who are members of snowmobile clubs to 
receive $25 rebates on the payment of these increased fees; and 
3. 
Applies the revenues from these additional fees to the 
Snowmobile Trail Fund.