Ordinary citizens are facing spiralling fines and fees as hard up states try to cash in with steep increases in stealth charges. As states and municipalities continue to grapple with the recession's fallout, few turned to big, noticeable tax hikes this year.
Instead, they're slashing spending and turning to more modest, narrowly crafted increases in fees and fines.
Louisiana and South Dakota raised state park fees, while California increased vehicle registration costs and Wisconsin started charging more to retake the state driving exam.
Georgia raised fees on day care licenses, fireworks permits and traveling circuses. Oregon raised fees on medical marijuana, while Rhode Island imposed taxes on over-the-counter drugs, sightseeing tours and smartphone applications.
Fines are going up in many places too. Tennessee lawmakers increased traffic fines. Wyoming raised fines for trucks exceeding weight limits. New York city increased fines for taxi drivers caught talking on a cellphone while driving.
In Maryland, fee increases were common solutions this year as lawmakers struggled to balance the books without across-the-board tax increases.
Not even newborns went unaffected, as birth certificate fees doubled from $12. The fee for a vanity license plate doubled from $25. A surcharge on filing land records will double from $20.
Kim Malle, who lives on Maryland's Eastern Shore, isn't only unhappy about the recently approved fees, she's also concerned about rising tolls that are under consideration.
The Grasonville resident may have to pay more to take the Bay Bridge across the Chesapeake Bay when the toll rises from $2.50 to $5 on October 1 and up to $8 by 2013.
'I think this state has too many fees, definitely,' she said. 'I don't mind certain things, but I just think the state overdoes it.'
Julio Reyes said the recent jump from $50 to $100 to title a new car was too much, too fast.
'I think maybe $20 more, that's OK,' she said. '100 per cent? Too much.'
Fee increases can be an attractive alternative for lawmakers worried about losing political points or increasing hardships by raising income or sales taxes across the board.
'The folks who run government weren't born yesterday,' said Larry Gerston, a political science professor at San Jose State University.
'When they see a fee that has a built-in user base, in times of difficulty they'll do whatever they can to extract revenue from that base. Raising fees is often easier than raising taxes. They can avoid the controversy and the public backlash.'
But some lawmakers are tiring of the practice of using fees to avoid the dreaded T-word.
Texas state representative Richard Pena Raymond proposed a bill this year that would require lawmakers to officially label any proposed fee increase a tax increase.
'They say, “Look, it's not a tax, it's a user fee”,' said Mr Raymond, a Laredo Democrat. 'I say that's bull. The public is cynical already. We have to be honest and call it what it is - a tax.'
