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Senate committee backs bill to clear title hurdles for long-unregistered boats
Summary
S.B. 429 would let someone who has possessed a boat for at least one year obtain registration paperwork if prior registration lapsed five years, after certified notice to the last registered owner; the committee reported the bill favorably and agency counsel described acceptable proof if the prior owner cannot be located.
Senator Lambert told the Senate Committee on Natural Resources that S.B. 429 aims to resolve situations in which boats change hands without proper registration or title documentation.
Lambert said the bill addresses cases in which a boat's registration has lapsed and the craft has passed through multiple informal owners. Under the proposal, if a boat's registration has lapsed for five years and a possessor has had actual possession for at least one year, that possessor may obtain registration documentation by sending a certified letter to the previously registered owner and filing copies of the notice and return receipt with the commission, along with an affidavit attesting to possession. "If the boat has registration has lapsed for 5 years and you've had possession of it for a year, it allows you to get a certificate..." Lambert said.
Cole Garrett, general counsel for Wildlife and Fisheries, told the committee the bill requires documentation that establishes the possessor's claim, such as a bill of sale or other evidence, and that returned mail indicating the prior owner has moved or died will be sufficient to proceed in some cases. "We would require something that shows that they are properly the right possessor... whether it be a bill of sale or... some court order," Garrett said, adding that returned certified mail showing the prior owner moved or is deceased may satisfy the notice requirement.
The committee reported S.B. 429 favorably by unanimous consent; no roll-call vote was recorded in committee.
