Washington State - Annual Registration - RTA Tax

Updated weight today at Siler in Burien since everyone’s been going here. Entering the front people were a little confused stated I needed some other form? But someone else came to assist and just told me to get in line. Counter person able to change it no problem. $16 fee to change and print new registration. Gonna submit refund today and let the wait begin. Either way as long as I don’t have to pay next year I’ll be happy.

 

So got a response and no refund.

*there is no provision for refund per your request
* transactions that took place before you provided a new scale weight will not be considered fees paid in error and will not qualify for a refund

Not surprised but hopefully next year I don’t get the tax and I’ll be happy!

 

Hate to bump an older thread, but seems appropriate.

Just snagged a 2024 TRD Pro and am navigating this issue. What's happened so far:

1. Dealer messed up and didn't include the RTA excise tax in my deal which meant I had to pay it afterwards. This was mainly because the DOL tools suggests that my tundra is exempt and that was reinforced when I used their online estimator by VIN and it came back with like $30 and change for the RTA portion.
2. Got my certified weight which came back at 6,200 pounds.
3. I attempted to take the weight and registration into my local licensing office and the folks there straight up told me they got their hand slapped by the state for changing a weight on the registration before and would not be able to do it for me.
4. Called a different office and they said they'd be happy to help, but would need the actual title for the vehicle (have to request it from the lien holder) rather than just the registration. Lien holder was fine with that, but the process to request it be sent somewhere seemed a little gray.
5. Called that office back to clarify and they THEN said they'd just need a letter from Toyota stating that the weight on the MSO (which was what generated the incorrect weight on the title) was wrong in order to have all their ducks in a row. Apparently there was some directive put out at the state level recently (maybe June or July) that precluded as much ad-hoc changing of the weight without more documentation involved...likely as the result of a bunch of people updating their weights to get out of the tax.
6. I had previously sent a message to Toyota and they sent me their pressroom documentation which shows my vehicle's weight at a MINIMUM of 6,010 pounds, but tried calling again today. The lady on the line told me that she wouldn't be able to give me that kind of "letter" and suggested that I work with the dealer to get a copy of my MSO as that would likely be the first step in getting it updated such that it could then be used to justify a change on the registration/title for the weight.

Overall, it just sounds like the state may have cracked down in the last few months on this and none of the licensing offices necessarily know exactly what to do without getting in hot water, so the process isn't as simple now as others here have claimed it was in the past.

Might still try Siler as others have had success, but wondering if anyone else has dealt with making this change more recently than April and had any success. At this point, I'm not hopeful I'll get a refund on the tax I paid this year (unfortunate, but whatever). That said, I DO really want to make sure the weight is updated for subsequent years so that I don't have to pay it moving forward.

Anyone out there done it recently?

@Kona_boy - Any thoughts reading through this with your process earlier this year? Any developments you hadn't noted above?

 

Wow that sounds like the classic run around… I’d go to Siler like you said with your weight slip and go from there. It was pretty painless but reading throughout the thread different dol have different experiences so I picked Siler even though it wasn’t the closest.
Also not surprised Washington tryna suck all the taxes they can even though we’re correcting an error… also doesn’t make sense paying less taxes for a heavier vehicle… but hey I’m not complaining haha keep us updated! @Wat253

 

@Kona_boy Thanks for the quick response.

I did try Siler over the phone this afternoon, but the person that answered the phone had no idea. Don't relish driving out there without knowing for sure, but like you say, it may be worth it given folks have had good luck with them.

Other than that, I finally got a call back from the DOL and the lady seemed a little confused, but ultimately told me to go to the Pierce County auditor with JUST the registration and weight slip and they'd be able to get me squared away. I did just that this morning and the clerk was again a bit confused as to what I wanted to do, but after conferring with their manager, they decided to call Olympia to get it figured out. After a few hours, the Pierce rep got back to me and said the only way Olympia would be willing to update the weight would be for Toyota to issue a revised MSO/MCO and note that the first contained an error when it comes to weight. After my conversation with Toyota over the phone, I'm doubtful that's in the cards no matter how much hell I raise....

Seems like the main issue is that the MSO lists an artificially low weight because that's how they ship the trucks from the factory (e.g. less gas and possibly other fluids), but that shouldn't be a factor given it's called out as "shipping weight" rather than curb or gross weight.

The RCW states that the scale weight is what determines the RTA tax exemption and the definition for scale weight is "empty scale weight," which is the truck weight empty as it stands ready to carry a load. Seems like that aligns with the certified weight I got (read: not me in the truck or any load in the back).

So I think I just need to get in contact with the person making the call and make my case, but I'm not sure the Pierce County rep is going to give me that info when I call back....

All this to note that anyone trying to do this in future may have more of a challenge than folks did previously, which is a shame.

More to come.

Also, your statement:

"also doesn’t make sense paying less taxes for a heavier vehicle"

I think it's because we end up paying more in gas taxes because of the vehicle weight making it less efficient. So, the state gets their tax either way.

 

Update:

Called Siler yesterday and chatted with them a bit. They suggested there MIGHT be a "loophole" (read: allowance for an official Toyota document to suffice for the minimum weight), but said they'd have to look at it in person in order to evaluate it's suitability to meet the new guidelines from the state.

I had been directed to this page by the Toyota rep I spoke with:https://pressroom.toyota.com/vehicle/2024-toyota-tundra/

Which contains this document: https://toyota-cms-media.s3.amazona...08/2024_Toyota_Tundra_Product_Information.pdf

Went into Siler this morning and they approved the change based on the fact that my 2024 TRD Pro is listed as being a MINIMUM of 6010 pounds and they supplemented that proof with the weight slip I got that read 6,240 pounds which is ultimately what they update my registration to today.

Now, this means that, at least for THIS bit of "official Toyota documentation," if your vehicle isn't listed as being over 6000 pounds (read: everything not a hybrid 4x4), then you can't use this bit as proof even if you do have a certified weight slip that shows the weight being over 6000. So, less chance you can just load up your truck with "rocks," take it to a scale, and expect that to work.

She did tell me that for vehicles without a readily available MSO, the certified weight slip WOULD be their primary documentation, so if you bought an older truck you might be okay.

I had emailed the Director of the DOL last night to see what he had to say about the situation and if he actually responds and there is information I figure might help folks in future, I'll try to include that here for posterity's sake as well.

 

Glad you got it fixed! Sorry you had to jump through all these hoops but helpful for future people for sure!

 

I think we all appreciate the detail and work you put in!

 

Well I implemented the alternative loophole to avoid the RTA tax today. Just move out of the Sound Transit area, tabs were 98$ when I renewed haha.

 

Here’s a new argument. I noticed that there is a fine for having an overweight/overloaded passenger vehicle and the fine is avoided if the registration is updated to a weight reflecting the ticketed load weight. So I wonder how their new “rule” deals with this. This RCW (below) doesn’t seem to indicate that one can’t overload their vehicle from a manufacturer label standpoint. There may be another section prohibiting overloaded passenger vehicles based on manufacturer label, but I don’t think that’s the case. So how can they stop you from abiding by the law, by registering the vehicle for a potential gross weight load exceeding your registered weight (initially based on manufacturer weight). Essentially they would be telling you that you have to receive a ticket first. On the other hand, if they won’t change the registration after being issued a ticket under this law, maybe you are stuck with the fine. On the other, other hand, 99% of tundra drivers will overload the 300 pounds of payload thus overloading the vehicles gross vehicle weight/registered weight. http://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=46.16A.540

Furthermore, installing certain accessories to your vehicle can increase the load taking ability, and I can’t imagine you would need to consult the manufacturer to change the registered weight (from a law standpoint, not worker opinion or dol rule standpoint). I believe the accessory instruction should suffice as documentation.

Pretty sure the DOL changed their weight registration rule without considering other RCW’s as per standards in Olympia. But if it’s just a “rule” and there is no basis for the rule (rcw or wac) it will not hold weight so to speak.
#notalawyer

Another edit to add this hypothetical example… 7000# GVWR when many 2nd gen’s are weighing in at 6000 pounds with just a full tank of fuel and maybe a bedliner only leaves 1000 pounds of cargo left. Subtract you and your four passengers means that your next stop at the Golden Arches puts you over your GVWR and in jeopardy of violating the RCW above. And heaven forbid you have your dog too! Thus, you will need to update the GVWR to avoid a ticket! …Not that you can get pulled over in WA anymore but that’s a different conversation it’s all about what’s on paper.

 

Anyone on here register their truck outside the sound district? Like a PO Box or mail forwarding service?

 

There seems to be very little to prevent someone from doing that, even with a non existent or unrelated to you address. I have heard of people registering to their relatives/friends/parents/second home etc without issue. You may run into problems when there is a mix of insurance, license and registration addresses though if an accident etc happens.

 

Got my renewal today and it’s $120 down from $700 when we bought the truck.

 

Sounds like your address maybe outside the RTA tax area but when purchased the dealer believed you were per your zip code (may have gotten a large check when you got your plates).

 

sorry forgot the comma. Total is $120, my 4Runner is $400, Tacoma was about $500. Crazy bc it’s cheaper if it’s heavier? Washington for you

 

Oh so your listed scale weight for the Tundra is more than 6000? (Due to being a hybrid?). That’s very interesting. I just moved out of the area and my renewal for a 2021 Tundra was 100$ and 2022 4R 110$ so am counting myself lucky (was 450$ and 550$ last year). The new sequoia should be more than 6000lbs too but I don’t think that rule applies to SUVs (just looked it up every 4x4 sequoia is more than 6000lbs per Toyota while the prior gen was oddly 59xxlbs so would never qualify).

 

yea I took it to get re weighed last year and they updated the weight on my registration.

 

Has anyone tried updating the scale weight recently? I called Siler and the person who answered the phone stated they were only going by MSO

 

Got my registration in the mail, total was $114. New registration scale weight is 6700 but gross weight is 8000. No idea where they got that number from, last years says 5700.

 

Moved outside the RTA area and got my renewal. I guess something to consider is the weight fee, I never got them to update my weight and now that’s a bonus as the weight fee would have been more. Is the 8$ ferry thing new??? Overall I feel for the guys still inside the RTA area with the ridiculous fees there. We get hit hard enough with the crazy gas taxes.

 

Burn down your gas, remove the tools and spare tire, reweigh your truck and bob’s your uncle!