Each year about this time, I file for a refund of the Connecticut motor fuel taxes paid on the gasoline we used on the boat in the past year. It comes to 25 cents a gallon currently (26 cents for diesel) and if you've used at least 200 gallons, you can file Form AU-724, which you can obtain at www.ct.gov/drs or simply download from here. You need to complete only Schedule A & B of the form. Note that Connecticut DRS will subtract 6% use tax from your claim.
I've been filing for this refund for the last 14 years and often back then, the refund was enough to really make it worthwhile because gas prices were relatively low. In recent years, with higher gas prices, the refund hasn't been all that exciting. Last year, my refund check came to just $37.00 but, since I keep the records anyway, I keep on filing.
When I file the form, I also add that year's totals to a spreadsheet that I've kept since 1996. This year, the totals got my attention: $20,141 spent on boat gas in the last 14 years. That's 8,824 gallons.
No complaints here, however. When I think about all the great places we've been, the adventures we have had together, all the wonderful people we have met and friends that we have made, $20K was a great investment.
We're looking forward to starting on the next $20,000 although with the price of fuel, we'll get there in a lot less than 14 years.
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