HAMMOND | In a targeted crackdown on out-of-state boaters, more than 300 with boats moored in Hammond and East Chicago have been fined for not paying excise taxes. As many as 89 face having their driver's license suspended and a $500 default judgment for failing to act on the tickets.
With the enactment of a 2006 law to improve enforcement, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources first embarked on a public education campaign to convince out-of-state boaters the state is serious about collecting the tax.
The law had been revised because it had been largely unenforceable. Out-of-state boaters had been required to register their boats in Indiana creating headaches for boaters with titles held in other states. The law was changed to allow the boaters to register boats in their home state as long as they paid Indiana's excise tax.
The use of "gentle persuasion" to encourage boaters to comply voluntarily came to a halt last September when the DNR launched a sweep of Lake County marinas.
Marina Shores and the Portage Marina in Porter County were patrolled in 2007 for excise violations as well as Michigan City's Washington Park in LaPorte County. This year, all three will see more concentrated efforts similar to those in Lake County.
The increased law enforcement action was prompted in part by recurring complaints by irate in-state boaters who pay the tax when they register their boats.
DNR District Cmdr. Lt. Jerry Shepherd said an out-of-state resident who evades paying Indiana's excise tax on a boat will raise the hackles of local residents much like a motorist who moves to Indiana and won't register his car to avoid the tax.
"These people felt they were being cheated," Shepherd said of the angered boaters.
Being the largest marina and with 85 percent of its boaters from out-of-state, the hardest hit was likely the Hammond Marina. Ticketed boaters weren't happy, mostly about having to travel in dead winter to Lowell Town Court if they chose to contest the ticket, Port Authority Director Milan Kruszynski said.
Of the more than 300 boaters cited in Hammond and East Chicago, between 150 and 200 refused to comply, contested or did not respond to the notice, according to DNR Public Information Officer Shawn Brown.
Kruszynski said boaters are turning up a little later than usual, but he does not believe the issue is adversely affecting the marina. The economy may end up more of a factor, he said. Of the 918 available slips, only 420 are fully paid. The season, however, doesn't officially begin until May 1. "We're not concerned about the 420 because we do get a rush," he said.
East Chicago Marina Director Richard Novak said boaters there haven't raised the issue.
"Not one person has complained about the excise tax," he said.
Of the marina's 296 slips, 70 remain available. Most of the boaters not returning this year are citing the poor economy.
"They would rather pay their bills," Novak said. "Ninety percent say they had to put food on the table."
