Tedisco, Santabarbara call for ‘no more DMV fees’
ALBANY, N.Y. » Senator Jim Tedisco, R- Glenville, and Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, D-Rotterdam, have called upon the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to rescind plans to charge all motorists a $25 fee for being required to turn in their old license plates for new ones.
State officials announced plans to replace the existing blue-white and gold license plates with new plates starting in April 2020. Motorists will be charged a $25 license plate replacement fee on top of their existing registration renewal fees.
Motorists who wish to keep their current license plate number will also have to pay an additional $20 fee.
Tedisco expressed his disagreement with the plan.
“I don’t have an issue with updating the design of New York’s license plates, or replacing the plates that are peeling, but taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for the inferior product that the state has produced.
“The state’s new $25 ‘ license plate replacement fee’ and the $20 fee for people to keep their current license plate number is the latest example of the nickel and diming of taxpayers.
“It’s no wonder that New York State is consistently ranked number one for highest taxes in the nation, first for places where millennials are fleeing from, and tops the list as one of the worst places to retire,” Tedisco said.
“More than 189,000 people escaped from New York over the last year and one million over the past decade,” he said. “These new DMV plate fees will certainly accomplish one goal: getting more New Yorkers to hit the road – permanently.
“New York is known as the ‘ Empire State’ and its slogan, as the new license plate design shows, is ‘ Excelsior’ or ‘ever upward,’ but we soon may be known as the ‘Empty State’ for ‘ever higher taxes and fees.”
Under Santabarbara’s legislation, when registering a mo
tor vehicle in New York State, drivers would have the option of keeping the license plates previously issued for their vehicle unless the plates are damaged or lost. The bill further clarifies that should the state decide to update or replace license plates that have previously been issued and are deemed to be in good condition, drivers will not be charged any additional fees for such replacements or to keep their current plate number.
“It seems like the state is finding new reasons to replace our license plates and it’s happening over and over again, costing us, the taxpayers, more money each time. Enough is enough,” said Santabarbara. “Most people are happy with the plates they have, trying to get to work in the morning and take their kids to school. Who wants to pay extra for the Governor’s new design project? If these new plates are so important, he should pay for them, period.”