Bill
H 3273
Raises Massachusetts motor vehicle excise by increasing taxable-value percentages: 90% to 95%, 60% to 70%, 40% to 45%, boosting taxes, especially for newer vehicles.
Title: An Act relative to vehicle excise tax
Sponsor: Rep. Tommy Vitolo (15th Norfolk)
Jurisdiction: Massachusetts
Classification: Bill
Current committee referral / status: Referred to committee on Revenue (also previously referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry); hearing(s) scheduled (see timeline below)
Note on source documents
- The provided materials contain conflicting content: the bill metadata and some legislative-action entries reference a “Noncompete covenants” subject and include an unrelated South Carolina non‑compete draft. The statutory text included under House Docket No. 1808, filed by Rep. Vitolo, is clearly titled “An Act relative to vehicle excise tax” and amends chapter 60A of the Massachusetts General Laws. This summary focuses on the Massachusetts vehicle‑excise provisions actually contained in H 3273. Users should verify the official engrossed bill for final authoritative language.
Purpose and intent
- The bill seeks to change the percentage figures used in G.L. c. 60A, §1 for computing the taxable value of motor vehicles for the motor vehicle excise. In practical terms, it raises the percentages applied in that statutory formula, which increases the base value on which excise taxes are calculated.
Key provisions (exact textual changes)
- Amends Section 1 of chapter 60A by changing three numeric percentages:
- Replace “90%” with “95%”
- Replace “60%” with “70%”
- Replace “40%” with “45%”
Who or what is affected
- Vehicle owners in Massachusetts: By increasing the percentages used to compute taxable value, owners—especially of newer vehicles—would generally see higher motor vehicle excise liability.
- Municipalities and state/local fiscal outlook: Higher taxable values would raise excise tax collections, increasing local (and possibly state) revenues depending on statutory distribution rules.
- Registries / assessors: Local officials who administer motor vehicle excise calculations would implement the revised percentages.
Likely impact
- Raises motor vehicle excise tax bills proportionally to the percentage increases; the largest absolute increases would fall on newer (higher‑valued) vehicles.
- Aggregate fiscal effect depends on vehicle fleet composition and local excise rates; a formal fiscal note would be required to estimate dollar impacts.
Procedural / timeline notes
- Prefiled: 12/05/2024 (per docket)
- Filed/introduced/read first time: mid‑January 2025 (filed 1/15/2025 / introduced 1/14/2025 entries)
- Referred: Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry (1/14/2025); later referred to Committee on Revenue (2/27/2025)
- Senate concurred: 2/27/2025 (per docket entries)
- Hearings scheduled: originally 10/17/2025 (several scheduling entries; one shows 10:00 AM–1:00 PM, another a reschedule/virtual update to 10:00–10:30 AM). Check committee postings for final hearing date/time/location.
Related bill
- HD 1808 is listed as the related/replacing docket.
Recommendation / next steps
- Consult the official enrolled bill text or the Legislature’s website for final language and placement context in c. 60A §1 (to confirm which vehicle-year brackets or valuation lines correspond to the amended percentages).
- Request the bill’s fiscal note from the Committee on Revenue to quantify revenue and taxpayer impacts.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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