HLS 18RS-308 ORIGINAL
2018 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 784
BY REPRESENTATIVES MCFARLAND, BISHOP, AND REYNOLDS
BOATS/SHIPS/VESSELS: Increases boat registrations fees
1 AN ACT
2To amend and reenact R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) and 851.32, relative to boat and boat trailer
3 registration; to provide for boat registration and numbering; to provide for boat
4 trailer registration; to provide for fees; to provide for the dedication of revenue; and
5 to provide for related matters.
6Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
7 Section 1. R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) and 851.32 are hereby amended and reenacted to
8read as follows:
9 §851.20. Identification number
10 A.(1) The owner of each motorboat or sailboat requiring numbering by this
11 state shall file an application for number with the Department of Wildlife and
12 Fisheries on forms approved by it. The application shall be signed by the owner of
13 the motorboat or sailboat and shall be accompanied by a the appropriate fee as
14 follows:
15 (a) For a boat which is fourteen feet or less in length, the fee shall be twenty
16 twenty-nine dollars.
17 (b) For a boat which is more than fourteen feet and less than eighteen feet
18 in length, the fee shall be twenty-five thirty-four dollars.
19 (c) For a boat which is eighteen feet in length or greater, the fee shall be
20 thirty thirty-nine dollars plus an additional two dollars for each foot or portion of a
21 foot in length greater than eighteen feet.
22 * * *
Page 1 of 4
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions. HLS 18RS-308 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 784
1 §851.32. Disposition of funds
2 A.(1) Funds accruing to the state of Louisiana from registration fees paid by
3 owners of motorboats and sailboats shall be paid into the state treasury and shall be
4 credited to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund. Out of the funds remaining in
5 the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, after a sufficient amount is allocated from
6 that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of the state which
7 become due and payable within any fiscal year, the treasurer shall, prior to placing
8 such remaining funds in the State General Fund, pay into the Conservation Fund of
9 the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission an amount equal to the total
10 amount, less the amounts provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, of the sums
11 recovered as registration fees in R.S. 34:851.20 and R.S. 34:851.23 of this Part for
12 the purpose of administering and enforcing the provisions of this Part or for such
13 other purposes as may be determined by said commission.
14 (2) The treasurer shall pay nine dollars of every fee collected for registering
15 a motorboat and sailboat pursuant to R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) into the Aquatic Plant
16 Control Fund created by R.S. 56:10.1.
17 B. The revenues derived from the registration fees paid into the Conservation
18 Fund shall be made available for the purpose of providing the necessary additional
19 funds for the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this Part or for
20 such other purposes as may be determined by the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries
21 Commission.
22 Section 2. R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) and 851.32 are hereby amended and reenacted to
23read as follows:
24 §851.20. Identification number
25 A.(1) The owner of each motorboat or sailboat requiring numbering by this
26 state shall file an application for number with the Department of Wildlife and
27 Fisheries on forms approved by it. The application shall be signed by the owner of
28 the motorboat or sailboat and shall be accompanied by a the appropriate fee as
29 follows:
Page 2 of 4
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions. HLS 18RS-308 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 784
1 (a) For a boat which is fourteen feet or less in length, the fee shall be twenty-
2 nine twenty dollars.
3 (b) For a boat which is more than fourteen feet and less than eighteen feet
4 in length, the fee shall be thirty-four twenty-five dollars.
5 (c) For a boat which is eighteen feet in length or greater, the fee shall be
6 thirty-nine thirty dollars plus an additional two dollars for each foot or portion of a
7 foot in length greater than eighteen feet.
8 * * *
9 §851.32. Disposition of funds
10 A.(1) Funds accruing to the state of Louisiana from registration fees paid by
11 owners of motorboats and sailboats shall be paid into the state treasury and shall be
12 credited to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund. Out of the funds remaining in
13 the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, after a sufficient amount is allocated from
14 that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of the state which
15 become due and payable within any fiscal year, the treasurer shall, prior to placing
16 such remaining funds in the State General Fund, pay into the Conservation Fund of
17 the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission an amount equal to the total
18 amount, less the amounts provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, of the sums
19 recovered as registration fees in R.S. 34:851.20 and R.S. 34:851.23 of this Part for
20 the purpose of administering and enforcing the provisions of this Part or for such
21 other purposes as may be determined by said commission.
22 (2) The treasurer shall pay nine dollars of every fee collected for registering
23 a motorboat and sailboat pursuant to R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) into the Aquatic Plant
24 Control Fund created by R.S. 56:10.1.
25 B. The revenues derived from the registration fees paid into the Conservation
26 Fund shall be made available for the purpose of providing the necessary additional
27 funds for the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this Part or for
28 such other purposes as may be determined by the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries
29 Commission.
Page 3 of 4
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions. HLS 18RS-308 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 784
1 Section 3. The provisions of Section 1 of this Act and this Section shall become
2effective August 1, 2018. The provisions of Section 2 of this Act shall become effective
3August 1, 2023.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 784 Original 2018 Regular Session McFarland
Abstract: Increases boat registration fees and dedicates the revenue to the Aquatic Plant
Control Fund.
Present law requires that each owner of a motorboat or sailboat required to be numbered by
the state to submit an application to the Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries accompanied by a
designated fee based on the length of the boat.
Proposed law increases the fee for 5 years as follows:
Boat Length Present Fee Proposed Fee
14 ft. or less $20 $29
>14 ft. and < 18 ft. $25 $34
>18 ft. $30 +$2 per ft. $39+$2 per ft.
Proposed law dedicates the revenue from the increases to the Aquatic Plant Control Fund.
Present law creates the Aquatic Plant Control Fund to fund the aquatic plant control program
and to fund cooperative research and public education efforts by the Dept. of Wildlife and
Fisheries and the LSU Agricultural Center relative to aquatic weed control and eradication.
(Amends R.S. 34:851.20(A)(1) and 851.32)
Page 4 of 4
CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.