Got my driver's license renewed today..... (Ellsworth: credit, how much, school)

[slyfox2]

Back when I lived in Pennsylvania when I got my license renewed 10 years ago, it would have cost me $50 if I was renewing it in PA today. Here in Maine it was only $21. Another great thing about living in Maine.

And while there is an excise tax for your car is Maine, it is fully deductible from your state income tax as a credit on your state tax. In most states you can't claim it at all, and if you do its only a deduction of a couple of bucks. And besides, the money that you pay for your car goes almost entirely to your local government and is not shipped off to some far away place in the state.

Only in Maine!!

[roadrat]

I just renewed my CDL-A and it cost me $34, I wonder why they charge so much more for CDL's.



RR

[wror]

Originally Posted by roadrat

I just renewed my CDL-A and it cost me $34, I wonder why they charge so much more for CDL's.



RR

Compare that to Assachusetts:
"How much will it cost me to get a Massachusetts CDL?
The CDL itself isn't too expensive: $30 for the permit test, $35 for the road test and $30 for the CDL endorsement, renewable every 5 years. The costly part can be learning to drive a big truck well enough to pass a road test. Many applicants go to truck-driving school which can cost thousands of dollars. Your background check will also cost $86.50 and you may have to pay for a physical exam"
Massachusetts Commercial Driver's License FAQ | DMV.org

[Cloudy Dayz]

$50 is insane, but it's worse here in Oregon. Here it's $60 ($40 for renewals), and that is for eight years, not ten. Plus testing fees, if needed. For CDLs it looks like the total fees are close to $300. That was a big sticker shock for me, when I moved here from California where it was $33. On the plus side, the Oregon DMV is actually run very efficiently. Wait times are generally zero, compared to California where getting a driver's license is an all day event, or a half day if you are really lucky. For that reason I couldn't complain too much about the fees.

[inthetrees]

I love living here, but it's far from cheap to live here. Compared to other rural states anyways.

[Submariner]

I renewed my DL a month ago.

Last time I had to go in person with a birth cert to prove I am a US citizen. They took a new photo, but printed my photo from before.

This time they still used the photo from before.

Two licenses ago I did not need glasses to drive. Last time was my first go round needing glasses, and still my DL does not mention needing glasses.

Some things slip through the cracks. I do like that I was able to do it on-line. I hate spending time at the DMV.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by inthetrees

I love living here, but it's far from cheap to live here. Compared to other rural states anyways.

Its a wash in some things from PA, but on the lower side for Maine. For example, in Pa, pensions are not taxed. But local taxes are only a deduction of no more than 90 bucks off of state taxes. And local taxes in PA can be 5-8 thousand dollars. But in Maine, local taxes are a credit on the state taxes, and while people complain about the local taxes, they are nothing like what they are in PA or NJ, for example.

Trash removal where I live in Maine is $25 a month. In Pa it was $75 a month. Food bills are cheaper. Gas is often cheaper. Electric utility is supposed to be very high in Maine, but its actually about the same as what I paid in PA 7 years ago.

Many people complain about the costs of living in Maine, but most of them have never lived in a place that is expensive.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Slyfox2, Did you get the old style license or the new one that has your biometric data and life history on the chip? I don't fly as a commercial passenger any more so I don't need the biometric license. If I need to go to Canada ever again I'll get one of those mini-passport cards or whatever they call them.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

Slyfox2, Did you get the old style license or the new one that has your biometric data and life history on the chip? I don't fly as a commercial passenger any more so I don't need the biometric license. If I need to go to Canada ever again I'll get one of those mini-passport cards or whatever they call them.

The didn't give me any choices in Ellsworth. And they didn't give me the license. It will come in the mail, they said in three weeks. They put a little sticker on the back of my current one that said it was good for 60 days beyond its expiration date.

They already had my biometric data and went over that with me, but didn't mention anything about life history.

How will I know if its a biometric one when it comes? I thought that Maine refused to cooperate with that because it was too expensive. Did the state guv change their minds?

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Yes, the state caved to the feds, but when it begins, drivers will be able to opt out and get the plain license.