If approved by the Senate, it would increase the total base cost of a passenger car plate to $39.50 and a motorcycle plate to $33.50.
However, local jurisdictions already can add permissive local taxes ranging from $5 to $20 and so the current cost of plates can be as much as $54.50 depending on the county you live in, said Lindsey Bohrer, BMV spokeswoman.
Remaining in the bill are two fee increases: deputy registrars who run the state’s approximately 200 Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) offices would charge $1.75 more for transactions; and counties would be allowed to charge an additional $5 for vehicle plates and use the money for transportation-related expenses such as road and bridge repairs.
State Rep. Niraj Antani, R-Miami Twp., was one of the no votes on the bill.
“Today, I voted against the transportation budget because of the two unfortunate tax increases included in it,” he said in a statement. "Working Ohioans deserve to see their costs lowered by us.”
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