A.T.V. Laws (Laramie, Gillette: sales, insurance, houses)

[snowman0u812]

Hi all, just wondering about the 4-wheeler laws. Are there alot of trails to ride on? Can you ride along the road in the "ditch" without penalty? thanks

[sunsprit]

Yes, and Yes.

You will need to "register" your ATV used on public property just like a motor vehicle these days. The state issues titles for them now, and has required a permit for many years on them. The titles are more recent, but it's also another revenue stream for the state, and it also brings ATV operation under motor vehicle laws and insurance. A lot of this regulation stems from the increasing number of ATV motor vehicle accidents ... some involving alcohol, some careless/negligent operation ... and resulting personal injuries.

Of course, if you stay on private property with your ATV, then you don't need to "register" it, although you are still required to "title" it.

[GEORGIAINMT]

Hey,Sunsprit, & anyone else out there.....now tell us some good places to go riding. We'd like to go to some places we can ride for a day, fairly close to Gillette. Any help is appreciated!
Georgia

[sunsprit]

I've never been ATV'ing in the Gillette area, but with your close proximity to the Black Hills, I'll bet there's some really great ATV'ing in your area.

The local ATV dealers will know where the best spots are.

[shadowwalker]

Better get the ORV maps about different parts of the states. Most places that sell atv's and such will have them,they are free. Don't be fooled by the "amounts" of trails on them. Most are roads you share with the regular vehicles and on those you will need to have the atv licensed and insured with turn signals installed if yours don't have them, also proof on you at all times. Now there are real trails and you will find these on the maps, on them you won't need the above just a wyoming state sticker,and these also you should be able to get at atv store.
I can't wait until I can get mine out for a good days ride. So far all I have been out for is just a few hours.

[GEORGIAINMT]

Originally Posted by shadowwalker

Better get the ORV maps about different parts of the states. Most places that sell atv's and such will have them,they are free. Don't be fooled by the "amounts" of trails on them. Most are roads you share with the regular vehicles and on those you will need to have the atv licensed and insured with turn signals installed if yours don't have them, also proof on you at all times. Now there are real trails and you will find these on the maps, on them you won't need the above just a wyoming state sticker,and these also you should be able to get at atv store.
I can't wait until I can get mine out for a good days ride. So far all I have been out for is just a few hours.

Thanks for the advice. Sounds a lot like Montana. Our ATV's are "street legal" as long as we put on our velcro rearview mirrors! We still have to get our Wyoming stickers. In Montana we had a permanent one, so have to get used to getting one annually. We've seen tons of ATV's in our neighborhood so I told my hubby that I'm going to start knocking on doors & asking people where to go to ride

[ElkHunter]

Small correction. No title is given unless you want to license your ATV.

To ride, all that is needed is a ORV Sticker. You can get one at Wal-Mart or K-Mart, or lots of other places. But an ORV sticker only allows you to ride on ORV Trails.

You have to obtain a Title and license your ATV to ride on the street or roads. In many cases, a ORV trail will come to a road and you have to drive down the road a ways before you can vear off and continue on the trail. In that case, you have to be licensed.

Of course, if you license, then you must insure.

Used to be that you had to take the Motor Cycle written test to be legal to drive a 4 wheeler. Not so as of 2008. Your normal drivers license is good for 4 wheels, be it on a car or on a Honda ATV.

Once licensed, you can drive it on the streets or county roads. Cannot drive it on Highways that require Minimum CC size or Minimum Speed, like the Interstate. However, you can ride it all around town or on any of the county roads.

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by ElkHunter

Small correction. No title is given unless you want to license your ATV.

Sorry, ElkHunter ... but the most recent statutes require a motor vehicle title be issued on ALL ATV transactions in the state of Wyoming. Even if your intended use is solely on private property, perhaps your own, and you have no intentions of ever using the ATV anywhere else, such as public lands off-road which require the WY sticker or public roads.

I just went through this process on my most recent out-of-state (through Ebay) purchase of a 2001 Polaris 500 6x6 for my ranch to supplement my older 1998 Polaris 400 6x6. The first purchase was from the folks in Laramie, and the title process was "optional" at that time. But the November 2008 purchase was not.

It's all about the money. The state wants to be sure that they collect the sales tax on the motor vehicle purchase, and that's done as part of the "title" process with your county clerk and treasurer's departments. They're especially trying to get their money on private party transactions, which used to be "under the radar" of the sales tax collections. But a buyer is legally obligated to pay the sales tax for an ATV purchase, so this is how the state is enforcing it.

For those of us who must declare our operating equipment for our farms & ranches, the penalties for not making a declaration and paying the ownership taxes each year are onerous; if an ATV shows up on the equipment list and without evidence of payment for the sales tax, the county treasurer will be knocking on your door. You don't want them finding equipment used in your farm and ranch business on the place and not declared; we've even scheduled our auction purchased older equipment, like our 1930's hay rakes with a FMW value of $100, as well as stock tanks and waterers from Big R/Murdochs. Small items like that don't add up to enough money to justify the collection process each year, but they get excited when you've bought another tractor or swather or grainary, or built another permanent outbuilding which didn't require a building permit. And you'd be surprised at how vigilant the county authorities are about spotting that stuff anymore ... we had a neighbor build a new pole barn equipment shed, exempt from a permit .... until he brought electrical power to it. It magically transformed from a "temporary" structure to a "permanent" one by that small addition so he could plug his tractors in during colder weather and have lighting, and they nailed him within days of running the buried cable and installing the outlets. The shop was not readily visible from the road, but set back within the complex of buildings, houses, and outbuildings on the property. While they were out inspecting his property, they were very careful to note all the ATV's in the shed and get the serial numbers and make/model info. Our neighbor got dragged through the coals over whether or not he'd paid sales tax on every ATV ... and they had a shop full of late model Yamaha's which they'd bought for ranch use and hunting. For the ones he could not prove with a receipt that he'd paid sales tax, they gave him an "estimated tax" bill, which was much higher than what he'd really owed ... the point being, that he could show up at the clerk's office with his bills of sale and pay the correct amount or otherwise they'd go after him for what they assumed was owed. He was able to find all the bills of sale from auctions and private parties very quickly when that happened.

Tax collection has become a very big business in this state. It's "their" money, not yours, the moment you complete a taxable event.

[msdmckee]

Remember too, that there are width restrictions on National Forest trails. Many forest now have the rule in place that roads/trails are CLOSED to riding UNLESS signed as OPEN.........a very careful distinction. Just means you need to read before you ride!

[ElkHunter]

Originally Posted by sunsprit

Sorry, ElkHunter ... but the most recent statutes require a motor vehicle title be issued on ALL ATV transactions in the state of Wyoming. Even if your intended use is solely on private property, perhaps your own, and you have no intentions of ever using the ATV anywhere else, such as public lands off-road which require the WY sticker or public roads.
Snip.

Wouldn't doubt they just changed it. I purchased a new Honda in May of 08 and it was still optional then. So they probably picked up on it with the July or Oct changes. Anything to make a buck, right? haha