SPRINGFIELD, ILL. – A proposed hike in aviation registration fees would only “further depress” a tax-burdened aviation economy in Illinois, AOPA said, urging officials to reject the plan.
Illinois House Bill 4444 would double registration fees paid by aircraft owners and pilots. The bill was introduced January 27, 2012, and referred to the House Rules Committee, backed by the Illinois Division of Aeronautics.
AOPA is urging lawmakers to vote down the bill that could make Illinois’ already aviation-unfriendly business environment even more challenging, especially by raising costs without directly reinvesting tax proceeds in its aviation system.
AOPA Director of State Government Affairs Mark Kimberling detailed the impact of Illinois’ tax policies on general aviation. He noted that in addition to imposing some of the highest sales and use taxes on aircraft purchases—up to 10.25 percent, depending on the community—Illinois is “the sixth most expensive state in the country for aviation fuel taxes, with both a 6 percent sales tax and $0.003 per gallon excise tax.
AOPA is continuing to urge defeat of the fee-increase bill in discussions with the aeronautics division, and with legislators (www.aopa.org).
