Wolf's Den: OHVers need to renew $25 decal

Hey! All you Off Highway Vehicle owners - listen up. If you have not registered your OHV you are breaking the law and negatively impacting education efforts and trail maintenance programs. Yet it is simple to comply with the OHV registration law.

You need to register your OHV and pay a $25 annual fee and display the OHV decal on your ride. This is a huge savings if you had previously registered your OHV for highway use where the registration fee is based on the value of your OHV.

If your OHV is mostly used off the pavement you likely qualify for the $25 annual fee, yet you can still run down the street if your OHV meets the definition of street legal - brake light, lighted license plate, horn, two headlights, rearview mirror - and it is registered and displays the OHV decal.

The OHV Decal program was started to help better manage the explosive growth of OHV use in Arizona. Revenue collected through this program is being used toward education programs, public information products and OHV law enforcement efforts, including hiring seven new OHV law enforcement officers. These new officers will specialize in OHV enforcement, promoting safe and responsible use. Future revenue will be used to bolster grants, which fund trail restoration and cleanup projects, with the goal of sustainable OHV management and motorized access.

Law enforcement officers across the state, including those in the national forests and on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands, are enforcing the requirement for the OHV Decal. Don't let a citation be your reminder to get or renew your decal. New OHV Decal enforcement efforts are being created, and targeted multi-officer efforts will be happening around the state with little or no notice.

If you are an OHV owner who is compliant with the law you will NOT receive a renewal notice from the Department of Motor Vehicles so it is up to you to renew your OHV decal each year. So if you bought your decal last January, like I did, you need to go to the MVD office or go online at www.servicearizona.com and renew during January. Because you do not have a renewal notice in hand when you go to the Service Arizona Web site, you need to go to the bottom of the home page and click on the Off Highway Decal tab in the All Services section.

You will need the last two digits of the OHV VIN number, your driver's license number and the OHV license plate number.

If you never registered your OHV, now is the time. Help support OHV use, trail maintenance and education by registering your OHV.

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Source: http://www.azdailysun.com/lifestyles/recreation/columnists/article_2f150ef5-c81f-58f5-ba7d-143c2bfb1204.html