Boat Owners May Have Federal Tax Deductions Available

ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 3, 2011 – Recreational boat owners who paid state sales taxes on a boat purchase, or those who secured a loan to finance a boat, may have some tax deductions coming to them when filing their 2010 federal income tax return, says a national boat owners group, BoatUS.

 

The Sales Tax Deduction

For boat owners who paid substantial state sales taxes on a new or used boat purchase last year, the Tax Extenders Act of 2008 continues to offer a federal tax deduction for state sales taxes. Boaters must choose either the state sales tax deduction or state income tax deduction on their federal tax return — you cannot take both.

 

In addition, to take the state sales tax deduction, the sales tax on a boat purchase must be applied at the same tax rate as the state’s general sales tax. In order to claim the sales tax deduction, tax returns must be itemized. State sales taxes are entered on IRS form Schedule A line 5b.

 

The Boat Loan Deduction

For those owners with a secured boat loan, mortgage interest paid on the loan may be deducted from your federal income taxes. Taxpayers may use the home mortgage interest deduction for one second home in addition to their primary home, and must itemize deductions on their returns. A boat is considered a second home for federal tax purposes if it has a galley, an installed head and sleeping berth.

 

Some boaters may be unaware of this potential tax benefit because not all lending institutions send borrowers an Internal Revenue Service form 1098 which reports the interest paid. Not receiving the form does not preclude taking the deduction. If a 1098 is not available, boaters should contact their lender for the amount of interest paid and should enter it on line 11 on Schedule A along with the lender’s tax ID number. If a form 1098 is sent, boaters should simply enter the amount on line 10 of Schedule A.

 

Sorry, AMT

For those who fall under the Alternative Minimum Tax, most deductions are unavailable. Boaters are urged to contact a tax preparer or financial advisor for more information.

 

For more details on the mortgage deduction on boats that qualify, go to www.IRS.gov and download Publication 936 or the Fact Sheets. For state tax deduction information download Publication 600 which also includes state-by-state tax tables.

"Tower Of The Year" Award Goes to TowBoatUS Lake Lanier

LAKE LANIER, Ga., February 22, 2011 - An on-the-water towboat company that helps Lake Lanier boaters get home safely was singled out for its professionalism at the BoatUS Towing Services Annual Conference recently held in Long Beach, CA. Tower of the Year honors went to TowBoatUS Lake Lanier, which is owned and operated by Capt. Robert Estrada and located at Waterfront Lanier Harbor Marina.

Capt. Estrada's locally-owned company is part of a nationwide network of over 290 ports and fleet of 600 TowBoatUS and Vessel Assist towboats. The company was honored for its near-perfect towing dispatch operation, superior customer satisfaction, towing case management, and best safety record for a towing business. It was also ranked one of the top 5 in BoatUS Membership sales among the Fleet.

Atlanta boaters flock to the 75 square miles of the lake every season, and TowBoatUS Lake Lanier has towed and salvaged over 10,000 boats since 1994. Based in Lanier Harbor Marina, they've handled everything from eight-foot PWCs to 125-foot mega-houseboats. Capt. Estrada has also been featured on the Nuts & Bolts Boating Series DVDs with his vast knowledge of boating safety and what to do when things go wrong on a boat.

"Capt. Estrada deserves to be recognized for his stellar service to boaters, as well as his top-flight internal operations," said BoatUS Vice President of Towing Services Jerry Cardarelli. "We are very proud of his operation and for the professionalism of his staff.

Much like an auto club, BoatUS Towing Services offers "unlimited" towing plans for Lake Lanier boaters starting at just $58 a year, which includes BoatUS membership. Without a towing plan, the national average out-of-pocket cost for a tow is about $600. For another $14, inland trailer boaters also take advantage of the Trailer Assist program for trailer roadside assistance most auto clubs won't pay for.

Fishing From Boats

More than 16 million anglers spent approximately 246 million days on the water fishing from boats.  This number includes saltwater, Great Lakes and other freshwater and was compiled by the National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation. Since 1955 this survey has been done across the US and is considered the most comprehensive database of wildlife recreation.

The report is available at: http://library.fws.gov/Pubs/nat-survey2006-casting-beyond-the-bow-fishing-boats.pdf

Design A Better Life Jacket and Win $5,000

Have Any Ideas on How to Keep Afloat? Design A Better Life Jacket and Win $5,000

ANNAPOLIS, Md.  Are you an armchair inventor with a better way to keep boaters, sailors and anglers afloat? The “Innovation in Life Jacket Design Competition” is calling for out-of-the-box life jacket design entries. However, you only have until the February 1 to submit your idea.

 

The BoatUS Foundation, along with Underwriters Laboratories and the Personal Floatation Device Manufacturers Association, have teamed up to seek out the newest technologies and design innovations that could rethink a 100-year-old design. “The interest in new, more comfortable designs are always important to waterway users,” said BoatUS Vice President of Boating Safety Chris Edmonston. “While current models of life jackets save lives every day, many are still bulky and uncomfortable, leaving boaters reluctant to wear them. This competition hopes to challenge that mindset.”

 

Entries that embrace new technologies and non-traditional thinking are being encouraged from individuals or groups, such as high school science clubs, collegiate design programs or even boat and fishing clubs. There are no rules regarding types of materials to be used or whether the design meets any current US standards. “This is the time to be unconventional in your thinking about what a life jacket has to look or feel like,” added Edmonston,

 

The entries will be judged based on four criteria: wearability, reliability, cost and innovation. "Wearability" relates to the level of comfort. "Reliability" will take into account the chances for potential failure, while "cost" will look at the affordability of the design. "Innovation" will take into account originality or the employment of new technologies.

 

In early February, video of all entries will be posted online at the BoatUS Foundation's channel at YouTube.com, and the public will be asked to select a group of finalists. The finalist entries will then be reviewed by a special panel of judges convened at the International Boating and Water Safety Summit in Savannah, Georgia, on March 6-9, 2011, and the winner announced. A $5,000 cash award goes to the winning designer.

 

To enter, video footage of an actual working prototype must be submitted by providing a URL link to the video (no actual prototypes are submitted). The video must clearly demonstrate how the design floats a person in the water. For more information on how to enter and for contest rules, visit www.BoatUS.com/Foundation/lifejacketdesign. You may also contact Chris Edmonston at 703-823-9550 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              703-823-9550      end_of_the_skype_highlighting, x8356.

Trawler Sinks Off of Montauk, NY

The Johanna Lenore, a 76 foot trawler sank yesterday in rough seas about forty nautical miles south of Montauk, NY.  The US Coast Guard reports that all four crew members were rescued and airlifted to Point Judith, R.I. where they were in stable condition.

The Johanna Lenore began taking on water earlier and when her pumps couldn't keep up  the crew donned survival suite, deployed a life raft and EPIRB. Other vessels in the area tried to assist with additional de-watering pumps. The vessel capsized and sank just after the Coast Guard lifted the crew into their helicopter.

Seas at the time were said to be between 10 and 15 feet with winds at 20 kt gusting to 30 kt.

Icebreaking Fleet is Hard at Work

CLEVELAND - As frigid winter weather continues to assault the nation, U.S. Coast Guardsmen are braving the elements and working hard aboard Great Lakes icebreakers, where they remain ready for maritime emergencies and ready to clear waterways for commerce.

Every year, icebreakers throughout the Great Lakes facilitate the safe transport of cargo with an average total economic value of more than $2 billion.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has approved a request by the shipping industry to extend lock operations at Sault Ste. Marie beyond the scheduled closure date of Jan. 15 to midnight on Jan. 18 due to late season demand for iron ore and coal resulting from improved economic conditions.  Coast Guard icebreaker crews will continue to lead the way and clear channels to get those vessels to their destination ports so they can deliver their cargo.

Nine U.S. Coast Guard icebreakers and two Canadian coast guard icebreakers have been engaged in Operations Coal Shovel and Taconite, the two largest domestic ice breaking operations, since early December.

The Coast Guard conducts domestic ice breaking operations for four basic purposes: search and rescue, urgent response to vessels, exigent community service requests, and the facilitation of navigation to meet the reasonable demands of commerce.  Exigent community service requests include flood control and opening channels to icebound communities or breaking ice for the ferries that serve them in order to ensure critical supplies of food or heating oil or access to medical assistance is maintained.

Operations Taconite and Coal Shovel ensure the most efficient movement of vessels through the entire Great Lakes region.  Based on ice conditions, assets are dedicated to specific areas in coordination with our international partners and commercial ice breaking services.

Every Ninth Coast Guard District icebreaker crew is busy breaking ice and freeing vessels.  They are:

• Cutter Mackinaw, a 240-foot seagoing buoy tender/icebreaker homeported in Cheboygan, Mich.,
• Cutter Biscayne Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in St. Ignace, Mich.,
• Cutter Bristol Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in Detroit,
• Cutter Katmai Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.,
• Cutter Mobile Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in Sturgeon Bay, Wis.,
• Cutter Neah Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in Cleveland,
• Cutter Alder, a 225-foot seagoing buoy tender homeported in Duluth, Minn.,
• Cutter Hollyhock, a 225-foot seagoing buoy tender homeported in Port Huron, Mich.

An additional icebreaker from the First Coast Guard District has been temporarily assigned to the Great Lakes region.  The crew of Cutter Morro Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug homeported in New London, Conn., will augment the other Coast Guard icebreakers operating throughout the season.

Maintaining a 1,500-mile international border with Canada requires special collaboration to keep shared waterways safe, secure and clear.  As such, Canadian coast guard ships Samuel Risley and Griffon are working with U.S. crews to accomplish operations Taconite and Coal Shovel.

Distress Signals

Prior to the start of each boating season it's a good idea to inspect and assess your vessels safety equipment.  In regions that make year round boating possible, January 1st is a good time to complete what could become an annual resolution.

Proper distress signals are often overlooked by many recreational boaters and become unusable after their expiration date.  Now is a good time to check the date on your flares and replace them with newer, up to date ones. Be certain to dispose of expired flares properly. Don't set them off like they were Fourth of July fireworks.

Red and orange flares are marine and aviation emergency distress signals. They should only be used for emergencies.  In the event a flare is used in a non-emergency situation, such as fired by mistake or accident, it should immediately be reported to the US Coast Guard in order to prevent an unnecessary rescue operation.

Title 14 U.S.C. 88 (c) makes it a class D federal felony, punishable up to 10 years imprisonment and/or a monetary fine, for anyone who knowingly and willfully communicates a false distress message to the Coast Guard or causes the Coast Guard to attempt to save lives and property when no help is needed.

Know your Coast Guard recognized distress signals and carry the correct signals on your vessel.  The US Coast Guard's web site provides an easy to follow guide: http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg5/cg5214/vds.asp