Monday, July 31, 2000

Auto owners dodge tax

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Northern Kentuckians among worst in the state

By Jim Hannah
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        They call it their “company car” — the vehicle a Kentuckian registers in Ohio to dodge the annual property tax.

        The scam is all too familiar to Kentucky State Police Trooper Jan Wuchner, who used to spend all his time hunting down Northern Kentucky residents who had not paid vehicle property taxes.

COMPARISON

If a Kenton County resident buys a 2000 Ford Explorer valued at $35,940, he or she could pay:   • $19 for a license plate.   • $603.36 in property taxes.   • Additional property taxes each subsequent year, but adjusted to reflect depreciation.   The property tax is dependant on where you live, not where you buy the car.   A Hamilton County resident would have to pay only the annual $42.25 license plate fee on the same vehicle. You pay no property tax.   Source: Kentucky Revenue Cabinet

        One of the most common schemes is for a Kentucky resident to register the family car under the name of an Ohio company, he said. The company was often their employer, but sometimes it was nothing more than a post office box.

        Northern Kentucky appears to lead the state in people dodging property taxes on vehicles. In 1998, the last year numbers were available, state police issued 200 citations for illegal plates to residents of Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties.

        The practice angers Mary Wilder, 53, of Elsmere.

        “It's a crock,” she said while recently waiting in line at the Kenton County Clerk's Office to pay property taxes on her two vehicles.

        “I'm a law-abiding citizen. I'm paying $55 on a truck

        that ain't run in three years — the motor's not even in the thing. I'm just doing it so I can renew the registration on my car that does run.”

        Because the property tax is based on the value of the vehicle, revenue service officials say it's usually the more expensive vehicles — such as imported sports cars — that people illegally register in Ohio.

        “It's usually not your working mother driving a Chevrolet that's doing this sort of thing,” said Alex Rose, general counsel for the state Revenue Cabinet.

        Trooper Wuchner was reassigned early last year. The responsibility of catching people using illegal tags is now split up among several troopers out of Post 6 in Dry Ridge, which covers a 10-county area, including Boone, Kenton and Campbell.

        State law requires anyone moving into the state to get a Kentucky license plate on their vehicle within 15 days.

        Someone driving a car with illegal plates can be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $500 fine. The Revenue Cabinet also will go after back taxes.

        Penalties and fees would have reached more than $150 on a $36,000 vehicle bought in January and illegally registered in Ohio to avoid about $600 in property taxes.

        From July 1, 1999, to May 1, the cabinet collected about $1.3 million in back taxes, fines and penalties from Kentucky residents caught using illegal license plates, Mr. Rose.

        “People who evade taxes in the form of vehicle tags cost us all money,” said Trooper John Bradley of Post 5 in La Grange, whose six-county coverage area includes Gallatin. “The money they avoid paying could be used on local roads and schools, as well as health departments and ambulance services. It really affects us all.”

        To report a Kentucky resident using out-of-state plates on his or her vehicle, call (800) 222-5555. Callers may remain anonymous.

       

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