Arlington County in April will begin targeting the 4,000 residents who have out-of-state license plates by issuing them a $100 annual fee for failing to register their cars in Virginia.
State law requires that Virginia residents title and register their vehicles within 30 days of moving to the state.
Arlington also requires residents to register their cars with the county within 60 days and pay a tax of 5 percent of the car’s value.
“We have about 4,000 vehicles with out-of-state license plates registered with the [county],” said Commissioner of Revenue Ingrid Morroy. “They are paying Arlington vehicle tax, but they have not registered with the [Department of Motor Vehicles], and that’sagainst the law.”
Morroy said the idea for the fee was prompted by residents.
“Citizens have been calling us asking ‘why is my neighbor still driving around with New Jersey plates, or with Texas plates?’ ” Morroy said. “We started to look into it and found out the residents are right, and everyone should comply with the law.”
Morroy said she estimates an additional 3,000 car owners have yet to register with the county.
Arlington sends an enforcement team out to streets and private garages to scout out unregistered cars three times a week, early in the morning.
“A lot of the residents we find who have not registered with the office are from out of state and don’t know what the laws are,” Morroy said. “Most of them want to pay their fair share.”
Residents have until March 31 to comply with the Virginia registration law before the county begins to assess the annual fees, Morroy said.
