AUGUSTA (AP) – Half of Maine’s motorists will be able to register their vehicles over the Internet by the end of 2004 if the state’s effort to get more towns and cities to offer the Rapid Renewal service is successful.

Now, communities comprising only 37 percent of Maine’s population offer the service, which allows motorists to register online 24-7 rather than having to come into town, city or state offices to register, Secretary of State Dan Gwadosky said.

Gwadosky wants to expand that to include communities accounting for half of the state’s 1.27 million people by the end of next year.

“We just think it’s a service that ought to be available,” said the secretary, noting that its availability 365 days a year and during off hours has proven to be popular.

Of the 48,000 online motor vehicle registrations since 2000, 24 percent were transacted during a weekend or at night, said Gwadosky.

One way to make Rapid Renewal available to more Mainers is to get some of the larger towns and cities that still don’t offer the service to make it available. Communities with at least 18,000 residents that still don’t offer the Internet service include Augusta, Auburn, Biddeford and Sanford.

Gwadosky plans to make a pitch for Rapid Renewal to Augusta City Council on Monday night.

One reason some towns are reluctant to offer the service is that under the current in-person system, they collect $2 or $3 agents’ fees per transaction, said Gwadosky. With pressure to keep local taxes low, municipalities don’t want to give up a source of revenue.

“Our response to towns is they really don’t lose the money,” said Gwadosky. “That’s the taxpayers’ dollars that they’re spending for the convenience of being able to register in their municipalities as opposed to going to a Motor Vehicle branch office,” said Gwadosky.

On the other hand, motorists save at least $1 per transaction by going to online registrations.

Gwadosky noted that the state’s not pushing to make Rapid Renewal mandatory. It only wants communities to agree to make it available to their residents.

The secretary believes many of the towns not yet offering Rapid Renewal are waiting for the state to reach the 50 percent saturation point. When it does, he believes the rest of the communities will go along with the idea.

The Secretary of State’s office offers more than a dozen online services, ranging from Rapid Renewal and vanity plate availability checks to corporate name searches and annual report filings.

Gwadosky want to add drivers’ license renewals to the list of online services.

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On the Net:

Secretary of State Online: http://www.state.me.us/sos/sosonline/

AP-ES-10-26-03 1421EST

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