MRAA reminds dealers about marine sales tax deduction
CHICAGO, Ill. — The government’s new stimulus package includes deductions for sales tax paid on the purchase of vehicles like cars and RVs, but an MRAA Dealer Alert sent Monday served as a reminder that a federal deduction for recreational boats has existed since 2004.
On Oct. 22, 2004, President Bush signed into law the American Jobs Creation Act, which included a special federal deduction for state and local sales tax paid on the purchase of recreational boats. The law allows an individual claiming itemized deductions to include general sales tax or, in the case of a major purchase like a boat, the entire amount of the tax paid.
The law allowing the sales tax deduction has been renewed several times by Congress with the most recent authorization set to expire in 2010, according to the MRAA.
“MRAA has informed boat dealers about this very important tax savings several times over the past few years, because we believe it is an important factor in the selling process. It is even more important today to sell this income savings in these very hard times,” said MRAA Chairman Ed Lofgren in the Dealer Alert.
In addition to the sales tax reminder, the MRAA sent out a second alert Monday asking dealers to write Congress to share personal stories illustrating the need for government intervention to loosen credit markets.
“It is clear to MRAA that dealers are losing sales due to the credit crunch contributing to the severe downturn in new boat sales,” the alert stated.
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