With little fanfare, the Vancouver Transportation Benefit District Board unanimously approved a $20 license tab fee increase Monday evening. The city council serves as the Transportation Benefit District Board to control vehicle fee revenues.
The $20 fee increase was not a new discussion. An increase in 2018 has been the plan since the fee was first approved in December 2015. Chris Malone, public works finance and asset manager, said the fee assures a “user pays” dimension to the overall funding approach. The $20 — now $40 — fee is also the single largest revenue generator in the street funding strategy.
To be clear, the fee is one part of the overall vehicle registration fee, which averages $83.75 without local tab fees.
“We said two years ago this is what we’re going to do as part of our overall plan,” said Councilor Jack Burkman.
The city was actually required to wait two years to increase its tab fee because of state law. Another increase has not been discussed.
The tab fee has been part of recent discussion thanks to a city study that found Vancouver is missing out on $300,000 annually due to residents keeping out-of-state plates. With the tab fee increase, the city would lose about $600,000 annually from its street fund.
The tab fee generated $2.4 million in 2017 and is expected to bring in $4.8 million in 2019. The fund is used to repair city streets.
Enforcement
Since discovering the loss in revenue, the city has started working on enforcing the registration requirements. About 10 percent of Vancouver residents still have vehicles registered out of state.
The Neighbors On Watch volunteer group has been patrolling neighborhoods and tracking cars with out-of-state plates. In the last two months, the group has noted more than 1,000 vehicles in violation of the law. The city also launched an online reporting system for residents to report vehicles in violation. In the first 45 days, 360 cars were reported.
“Everyone needs to pay their fair share,” said Mayor Tim Leavitt. “If you’re working in our community, living in our community, you need to pay to keep our roads in fair shape.”
The increased tab fee will go into effect in June.
