The Florida Senate

328.72  Classification; registration; fees and charges; surcharge; disposition of fees; fines; marine turtle stickers.--

(1)  VESSEL REGISTRATION FEE.--Vessels that are required to be registered shall be classified for registration purposes according to the following schedule, and the registration certificate fee shall be in the following amounts:

Class A-1--Less than 12 feet in length, and all canoes to which propulsion motors have been attached, regardless of length ............ $3.50

Class A-2--12 feet or more and less than 16 feet in length ............ 10.50
(To county) ............ 2.85

Class 1--16 feet or more and less than 26 feet in length ............ 18.50
(To county) ............ 8.85

Class 2--26 feet or more and less than 40 feet in length ............ 50.50
(To county) ............ 32.85

Class 3--40 feet or more and less than 65 feet in length ............ 82.50
(To county) ............ 56.85

Class 4--65 feet or more and less than 110 feet in length ............ 98.50
(To county) ............ 68.85

Class 5--110 feet or more in length ............ 122.50
(To county) ............ 86.85

Dealer registration certificate  ............ 16.50


The county portion of the vessel registration fee is derived from recreational vessels only.

(2)  ANTIQUE VESSEL REGISTRATION FEE.--

(a)  A vessel that is at least 30 years old, used only for recreational purposes, and powered by the vessel's original-type power plant may be registered as an antique vessel. When applying for registration as an antique vessel, the owner of such a vessel shall submit certification, as prescribed by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or from a marine surveyor that the vessel meets the requirements of this paragraph.

(b)  The registration number for an antique vessel shall be permanently attached to each side of the forward half of the vessel as provided in ss. 328.48 and 328.54

(c)  The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles may issue a decal identifying the vessel as an antique vessel. The decal shall be displayed as provided in ss. 328.48 and 328.54

(3)  ALIEN OR NONRESIDENT LICENSE FEE.--An additional license fee of $50 shall be required of all aliens or nonresidents of the state on all vessels not subject to a specific reciprocal agreement with another state, which vessels are used for commercial purposes and owned in whole or in part by such aliens or nonresidents. Such fee shall be in addition to the vessel registration fee required by this section.

(4)  TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP.--

(a)  When the ownership of a registered vessel changes, an application for transfer of registration shall be filed with the county tax collector by the new owner within 30 days with a fee of $3.25. The county tax collector shall retain $2.25 of the fee and shall remit $1 to the department. A refund may not be made for any unused portion of a registration period.

(b)  If a vessel is an antique as defined in subsection (2), the application shall be accompanied by either a certificate of title, a bill of sale and a registration, or a bill of sale and an affidavit by the owner defending the title from all claims. The bill of sale must contain a complete vessel description to include the hull identification number and engine number, if appropriate; the year, make, and color of the vessel; the selling price; and the signatures of the seller and purchaser.

(5)  REPLACEMENT DECAL.--A decal issued to replace a lost or misplaced decal may be obtained by submitting $2.25 with a request for such replacement decal to the county tax collector. A replacement decal may not be issued except upon receipt of a written request by the registered owner or an appointed representative.

(6)  CHANGE OF CLASSIFICATION.--If the classification of a vessel changes from recreational to commercial, or from commercial to recreational and a current registration certificate has been issued to the owner, the owner shall within 30 days forward his or her certificate to the county tax collector with a fee of $2.25 and a new certificate shall be issued.

(7)  SERVICE FEE.--In addition to other registration fees, the vessel owner shall pay the tax collector a $2.25 service fee for each registration issued, replaced, or renewed. Except as provided in subsection (15), all fees, other than the service charge, collected by a tax collector must be remitted to the department not later than 7 working days following the last day of the week in which the money was remitted. Vessels may travel in salt water or fresh water.

(8)  MAIL SERVICE CHARGE.--A mail service charge shall be collected for each registration or reregistration mailed by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or any tax collector. All registrations and reregistrations shall be mailed by first-class mail. The amount of the mail service charge shall be the actual postage required rounded to the nearest 5 cents, plus a 25-cent handling charge. The mail service charge shall be in addition to the service charge provided in subsection (7) and shall be used and accounted for in accordance with law.

(9)  SURCHARGE.--In addition, there is hereby levied and imposed on each vessel registration fee imposed under subsection (1) a surcharge in the amount of $1, which shall be collected in the same manner as the fee and deposited into the State Agency Law Enforcement Radio System Trust Fund of the Department of Management Services.

(10)  DUPLICATE REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE.--A duplicate registration certificate to replace a lost or misplaced certificate may be obtained from a tax collector for $2.25. A duplicate certificate will not be issued except by written request of the registered owner or a person authorized by the owner to make such a request.

(11)  VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS.--The application form for boat registration shall include a provision to allow each applicant to indicate a desire to pay an additional voluntary contribution to the Save the Manatee Trust Fund to be used for the purposes specified in s. 370.12(4). This contribution shall be in addition to all other fees and charges. The amount of the request for a voluntary contribution solicited shall be $2 or $5 per registrant. A registrant who provides a voluntary contribution of $5 or more shall be given a sticker or emblem by the tax collector to display, which signifies support for the Save the Manatee Trust Fund. All voluntary contributions shall be deposited in the Save the Manatee Trust Fund and shall be used for the purposes specified in s. 370.12(4). The form shall also include language permitting a voluntary contribution of $5 per applicant, which contribution shall be transferred into the ¹Election Campaign Financing Trust Fund. A statement providing an explanation of the purpose of the trust fund shall also be included.

(12)  REGISTRATION.--

(a)  "Registration period" is a period of 12 months during which a vessel registration is valid.

(b)  "Renewal period" is a period of 30 days during which renewal of a vessel registration is required, except as otherwise provided by law.

(c)  The following registration periods and renewal periods are established:

1.  For vessels owned by individuals, the registration period begins the first day of the birth month of the owner and ends the last day of the month immediately preceding the owner's birth month in the succeeding year. If the vessel is registered in the name of more than one person, the birth month of the person whose name first appears on the registration shall be used to determine the registration period. For a vessel subject to this registration period, the renewal period is the 30-day period ending at midnight on the vessel owner's date of birth.

2.  For vessels owned by companies, corporations, governmental entities, and registrations issued to dealers and manufacturers, the registration period begins July 1 and ends June 30. The renewal period is the 30-day period beginning June 1.

(13)  EXPIRED REGISTRATION.--The operation of a previously registered vessel after the expiration of the registration period is a noncriminal violation, as defined in s. 327.73

(14)  EXEMPTIONS.--Vessels owned and operated by Sea Explorer or Sea Scout units of the Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts of America, the Florida Association of Christian Child Caring Agencies, Inc., Safe Harbor Haven, Inc., or the Associated Marine Institutes, Inc., and its affiliates, or which are antique vessels as defined in paragraph (2)(a) are exempt from the provisions of subsection (1). Such vessels shall be issued certificates of registration and numbers upon application and payment of the service fee provided in subsection (7).

(15)  DISTRIBUTION OF FEES.--Except for the first $2, $1 of which shall be remitted to the state for deposit into the Save the Manatee Trust Fund created within the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and $1 of which shall be remitted to the state for deposit into the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund to fund a grant program for public launching facilities, pursuant to s. 327.47, giving priority consideration to counties with more than 35,000 registered vessels, moneys designated for the use of the counties, as specified in subsection (1), shall be distributed by the tax collector to the board of county commissioners for use as provided in this section. Such moneys to be returned to the counties are for the sole purposes of providing recreational channel marking and public launching facilities and other boating-related activities, for removal of vessels and floating structures deemed a hazard to public safety and health for failure to comply with s. 327.53, and for manatee and marine mammal protection and recovery. Counties that demonstrate through an annual detailed accounting report of vessel registration revenues that at least $1 of the registration fees were spent on boating infrastructure shall only be required to transfer the first $1 of the fees to the Save the Manatee Trust Fund. This report shall be provided to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission no later than November 1 of each year. The commission shall provide an exemption letter to the department by December 15 of each year for qualifying counties.

(16)  MARINE TURTLE STICKER.--The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles shall offer for sale with vessel registrations a waterproof sticker in the shape of a marine turtle at an additional cost of $5, the proceeds of which shall be deposited in the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund to be used for marine turtle protection, research, and recovery efforts pursuant to the provisions of s. 370.12(1).

(17)  FORMS AND NOTICES.--The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles shall prescribe and provide suitable forms for applications and other notices and forms necessary to administer the provisions of this chapter.

History.--s. 1, ch. 65-361; s. 2, ch. 67-586; s. 1, ch. 69-300; s. 4, ch. 70-336; s. 1, ch. 73-146; ss. 9, 15, ch. 74-327; s. 1, ch. 77-174; s. 81, ch. 79-164; s. 1, ch. 79-307; ss. 26, 30, ch. 79-334; s. 1, ch. 79-364; s. 2, ch. 80-266; s. 51, ch. 80-274; s. 9, ch. 81-100; s. 2, ch. 82-97; s. 2, ch. 82-181; s. 78, ch. 82-226; s. 9, ch. 84-184; s. 66, ch. 84-338; s. 6, ch. 85-324; s. 2, ch. 87-392; s. 3, ch. 88-144; s. 3, ch. 88-336; s. 5, ch. 89-168; s. 2, ch. 90-219; s. 29, ch. 91-107; s. 1, ch. 91-199; s. 1, ch. 91-215; s. 83, ch. 91-221; s. 4, ch. 92-72; s. 279, ch. 92-279; s. 55, ch. 92-326; s. 3, ch. 94-241; s. 952, ch. 95-148; s. 54, ch. 95-333; s. 16, ch. 96-321; s. 1, ch. 97-16; s. 40, ch. 97-96; s. 41, ch. 97-300; s. 15, ch. 99-4; s. 18, ch. 99-5; s. 113, ch. 99-13; s. 19, ch. 99-245; s. 55, ch. 99-248; s. 25, ch. 99-289; s. 39, ch. 99-399; s. 50, ch. 2000-152; s. 42, ch. 2000-313; ss. 30, 31, ch. 2000-362; s. 1, ch. 2001-369; s. 1, ch. 2004-75; s. 12, ch. 2005-157.

¹Note.--The trust fund expired, effective November 4, 1996, by operation of s. 19(f), Art. III of the State Constitution.

Note.--Former s. 371.65; s. 327.25.