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You might be interested in the Colorado situation. See these articles on FMCA.com: Colorado catches RV sales tax evaders Motorhomer pleads guilty to tax evasion

Coming in the July issue of FMC magazine: Coach House Platinum 272XL This 27-foot luxury Type C is available on a Ford E-450 or Dodge Sprinter chassis and is thoughtfully engineered for driving and camping comfort. Ride regulators A look at how shock absorbers help maintain a comfortable ride in your motorhome and the means employed by three different brands to accomplish that task. The Grand Strand For All Ages Grown-ups and kids alike find all sorts of amusement choices in family-friendly Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Generator Maintenance Tips for keeping a gas or diesel gen set running. Plus: Tech Talk Questions about towing a Jeep Liberty four wheels down; long-term dry camping. House Calls with the RV Doctor Which is best: using two six-volt batteries or one 12-volt battery? Tech & Travel Tips Tool on the road, sofa shelf, sun visor, cool electronics ... FMCA members receive Family Motor Coaching magazine free with paid membership. If you do not own a motorhome yet but still want to learn about the motorhome lifestyle, order a one-, two- or three-year subscription today. Read FMC online or in print and you'll be "smarter than the average bear" when you decide to start enjoying the motorhome lifestyle.

Good idea! For more information about starting a chapter, and to request a Chapter Formation Kit, please contact FMCA's Chapter Services department at chapters@fmca.com. Or, call (800) 543-3622 and ask for Chapters.

When replying to messages or starting a new topic, here's how to insert photos in your post: Save an image to your "desktop" or computer hard drive. Try to keep the image under 1MB in file size. Go the the FMCA.com forum where your are posting. Beneath the text box and to the right, click the Browse button. Find the location of the image(s) on your computer and click Open. Click the colored UPLOAD button. Scroll down and click Add Reply or Post Message, and you will see the image in your message. If you want to position the image at a specific spot within your message: Under and to the left of the Browse button, you'll see the message: Upload successful and is available from the 'Manage Current Attachments' menu. The Manage Current Attchments drop-down menu is just above the Browse button. In the text field, place your cursor where you want to insert the image. From the Manage Current Attachments drop-down, click once on the image that you uploaded, to insert it. You'll see some code has been added to the spot where you want to insert it. To insert images in Signatures, and for another way to insert images in posts, see the thread "How do I add a photo to my Signature?"

For those new to forums, your Signature is the pre-entered lines of text that appear at the end of all your posts. These instructions for inserting photos assume your are logged in as a member of the Community. An ideal size for an image in your Signature is 160 x 120 or smaller. Use your photo-editing program to size the image. 1. Upload the desired picture(s) to an fmca.com Community Photo Album. To do this, click the My Album link near the top of the page, and then click the New Album button. (Because this image will be part of your signature, you can choose to make this album not-public, if you wish.)Once your Signature photo is uploaded to an album, keep that page open in your browser. To the right of the image is an Image Link. Copy this exact URL (link). 2. Now, open a seond tab/browser window and go to the FMCA.com Community site. 3. Click My Controls. From the Menu on the left, scroll down to Personal Profile. Choose Edit Signature. 4. Place your cursor beneath your Signature text. Click the Insert Image tool (from the square formatting icons). 5. You will be prompted to enter the full URL of the image you want to insert. So paste the image link, which you copied from your photo album, into the space provided. 6.Scroll down and Click Update my Signature. The Insert Image tool/icon also appears when you are replying to mesages or adding new topics, so you can use the copy/paste Image Link to add images to the body of your posts, as well. For the other way to insert images into the body of your posts, directly from your computer, see my post "How to insert pictures." Note: The copy/paste of the image link can also be applied when you use free picture sharing Web sites, such as www.photobucket.com to size/store your images.

The Parking Rights Manual is available to FMCA members online. You'll find a link, and other information, on FMCA.com's Motorhome Rights section.

Cathe: Here are some articles on FMCA.com's Motorhoming with Pets pages that might help: My tips for traveling with cats Canyon the cat can travel Zandr and Kazmr: contented cats On the road with Rusty

According to the Texas Department of Public Safety Web site, if you are not domiciled in Texas but need to renew a Class A or Class B noncommercial license, you do not have to apply in person at a Texas driver's license office. Texas allows mail-in renewal of class A and B noncommercial licenses. The CDL-2 exemption certification form must be completed to secure the Class A or Class B noncommercial licenses. For more information, see http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administratio...taryrenewal.htm. Here is an excerpt from the Texas Department of Public Safety's out-of-state license renewal instructions: "The Commercial Driver License Law mandates that a commercial driver license must include the applicants color photograph; therefore, DRIVERS WHO NEED A CLASS A, B, OR C COMMERCIAL DRIVER LICENSE MUST APPLY IN PERSON at a Texas driver license office. If you are not domiciled in Texas you must obtain a license from the state where you currently reside. "Operators of Class A or B vehicles who are exempt from the commercial Driver License Act may renew by mail. If you qualify for a class A or B non-CDL, please complete the CDL-2 (Exemption Certification) form.When applying for a duplicate or a renewal of a Texas non-commercial driver license or identification card, provide a Texas residence address. Upon request, the license may be mailed to your current out of state address. Please provide the mailing address in the designated space on the application. "Any license issued via the mail will be produced with the previous digital photograph on file. If there is no digital photograph on file, a 'Valid Without Photo' license or identification card will be produced."

If you're interested in renewable energy sources for motorhomes, take note of this seminar scheduled at the Bowling Green Convention: Renewable Energy and Motorhome Applications Wednesday, July 22, 1:30 p.m. to 2:45 p.m., In Seminar 1 Two Toledo-based companies -- H2 Engine Systems and ShadePlex -- are developing renewable energy products that can be applied in the motorhome market. H2 Engine Systems is developing methods for hydrogen infusion with renewable fuels such as biodiesel used to power buses. The company has been running a transit bus for 18 months and claims to see a 15 percent improvement in fuel economy when hydrogen is used with biodiesel and ethanol. During the seminar, an H2 Engine Systems representative will discuss how hydrogen technology can be applied to motorhomes. A ShadePlex representative will discuss the company's solar awning technology. ShadePlex makes solar-electric building fabric that provides clean, renewable energy for buildings, shelters, shade structures, and tents. The University of Toledo's incubator program provides the location for the world headquarters of both H2 Engine Systems and ShadePlex. At the seminar, a representative from the university's Clean and Alternative Energy Incubator will discuss the university's involvement in the renewable energy field. View a list of Bowling Green seminars.

The National Park Service is offering free admission to all National Park Service sites on July 18 and 19, two days prior to the start of FMCA’s 82nd International Convention in Bowling Green, Ohio. So, while en route to the convention, consider taking a day trip to one of Ohio’s national parks or historic sites. The sites below are located within a three-hour drive of Bowling Green, and offer something of interest for every member of the family. Within one hour: Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial, located on South Bass Island on Lake Erie. Within two hours: Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Brecksville, Ohio. Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, Dayton, Ohio. Within three hours: James A. Garfield National Historic Site, Mentor, Ohio. First Ladies National Historic Site, Canton, Ohio. Hopewell Cultural National Historic Park, Chillicothe, Ohio. William Howard Taft National Historic Site, Cincinnati, Ohio. Register for the convention before June 29 and save $30 off gate registration. Attend FMCA’s annual membership meeting on Thursday, July 23, and you'll be eligible to win one of 10 $250 cash awards!

AND THE WINNER IS ... Christal, a puggle (pug/beagle mix) owned by FMCA members Ralph and Gloria Dolan of Cottage Grove, Ore. Congratulations! How to Enter Take a picture of your pet, and follow these steps to upload it to this thread/topic: 1. Click the Add reply button, above, right. 3. Browse to the image on your computer and then click UPLOAD. (The Browse and UPLOAD buttons are below the square text box.) 4. Scroll down and click Add Reply and you will see your photo/entry. When posting your photo, please share information about your pet: name, age, breed, motorhoming life, and any other information you care to provide. The winner Our hard-working, animal-loving staff will select their favorite photo befitting the current category. The winning pet owner will receive the featured prize for the month. The motorhomer who sends in the cutest pet photo in June will win an FMCA cap. Rules and conditions 1. Limit of three entries per month (one photo constitutes one entry). 2. By uploading a photo, you represent that you either own the copyright in the photo, or you have permission from the copyright owner to use the photo for the intended purpose, as further set forth in the next sentence, and that you hereby agree to indemnify Family Motor Coach Association, Inc. (FMCA) for breach of these representations. By entering the contest photographers agree to grant FMCA the royalty-free and nonexclusive right to distribute, publish and use the photographs in publications and on the Internet. 3. FMCA reserves the right to end or extend the contest at any time if entries are insufficient. 4. Winner will be notified via e-mail and announced on the Pets forum. Prize for June contest:

Factory tours, a museum, a historical site. Plus tennis, hiking and of course, motorhoming camping. I bet your grandkids may be the ones who crawl away from this adventure. They're lucky to have grandparents like you to take them on such a trip. You'd better get some rest now ....

The motorhomer who sends in the cutest pet photo in June will win an FMCA cap.

Rover is a 4-year-old bichon frise. Isn't he cute? He loves the motorhome.

Motorhomers who attend FMCA's "Bowling Green Bash" convention in July in Bowling Green, Ohio, will have plenty of things to see and do in northwest Ohio. I'm going to be sure to check out Bowling Green Wind Farm, site of Ohio's first commercial wind-generated power. The wind farm was made possible through Bowling Green's and the surrounding communities' commitment to producing electircity from clean, renewable energy sources. It was dedicated in November 2003. One of the tours offered at this convention takes you inside one of the turbines. Below are a few images of the wind farm. First photo: The main entrance sign to the Bowling Green Wind Farm, and its two southernmost wind turbine towers. The two turbines produced 7245 megawatt hours their first year of operation. Second photo: The turbines begin producing energy with wind speeds of 9 mph, then hit peak energy production at 32 mph. The turbines have a design tolerance of up to 150 mph. Third photo: Closeup of the solar-powered information kiosk. Fourth photo: The solar-powered information kiosk. In the background are the two northern wind turbine towers, which were developed at a cost of $4 million. Photos by Dustin M. Ramsey

Allen York, president of the Maine Campground Owners Association, addressed the overnight parking situation in the May 20 Kennebec Journal Morning Sentinel. Here is the article written by Mr. York, who owns Yonder Hill RV Park in Madison. Commercial lots that allow free, overnight parking have become popular among owners of recreational vehicles. There's no question that these parking lots serve an important purpose -- in particular, they present tired drivers with an easy option to rest for the night. Allowing overnight parking helps keeps drivers safe so they can get to their next destination. But these commercial lots that allow free parking to RVs illustrate a real and growing threat to many of Maine's 275 campgrounds. Fact is, each time an RV stops for the night in a commercial parking lot, a local campground loses out on a customer. And these days, each lost customer makes a larger dent on a campground's bottom line. To address this issue, the Maine Campground Owners Association (MECOA), of which I am president, recently supported a bill in the Maine Legislature that in part called for the creation of a Web site and brochures to educate RV owners about alternatives to commercial parking lots, including the locations of approved free camping areas and campgrounds close to highway exits. The bill that emerged from the legislative committee, however, was quite different: It simply proposed a ban on RV camping in commercial lots. RV owners across the United States have complained that they felt the bill, sponsored by Rep. Anne Perry, was unfair and amounted to a black eye on Maine's tourism efforts. MECOA encouraged Perry to withdraw the bill. But that hasn't stopped the outcry. Campground owners continue to hear directly from RV owners angered that Maine's Legislature would consider such a law. I have received hundreds of messages that range from simple opposition to the proposed legislation to personal attacks targeting my business and vowing to never again patronize my campground. It is unfortunate that these attacks have become personal in nature. What's worse, I believe they mask a larger problem faced by some Maine campgrounds. Many of Maine's campgrounds are struggling to operate their businesses in a difficult economic environment. The cost of running a campground rises every year, as state regulations and an evolving industry force owners to make changes to their facilities, from wastewater upgrades to more facilities to accommodate campers. Our campground alone has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on such upgrades in recent years. We also hoped to draw attention to a Maine law already in place that requires an entity that serves five or more camping parties, in exchange for direct or indirect compensation, to be licensed as a campground. As such, it would be required to follow the same rules and regulations as the state's other campgrounds, from waste requirements to regular water testing. Since this law already is in place, why isn't it being enforced at the state's parking lots which are being used for RV overnight stays? Before it was pulled from consideration, the bill addressed enforcing that law. However, enforcement was pushed down the line from the owners of the commercial parking lots to the individual camper -- and that wasn't our initial intent. Similarly, we did not want the proposed legislation to target Maine businesses allowing camping in their parking lots during events such as races, festivals or fairs. We hoped the proposed legislation would alert citizens -- from legislators to camping enthusiasts -- that campgrounds located near these big commercial parking lots are struggling as more and more RV owners opt to save a few dollars by pulling up for the night at a lot that charges no fee and offers no services beyond a vacant patch of asphalt. Maine campgrounds offer more than a place to park: We offer a wide array of recreational activities and entertainment for the whole family, from fishing and boating to music festivals and theme weekends. We want to keep our industry healthy, ensuring that RV owners exploring Maine have wonderful campgrounds to visit for years to come. But to keep Maine's campgrounds open and thriving, we must rely on RV owners to continue pulling in each night and taking advantage of everything we offer.

Make Room For More Janet Groene's Full-Timer's Primer article in Family Motor Coaching magazine offers sound advice for making more space in your motorhome to accommodate occasional overnight guests.

UPDATE It appears that LD 114 (HP 98), the Maine bill that would prohibit overnight RV parking in commerical lots, won't make it out of a House committee. The Health and Human Services Committee, on May 12, approved a motion to accept a Majority Ought Not to Pass Report. The report a bill receives is often the most important factor on its passage or defeat. The "ought not to pass" report was not unanimous, so a legislator may move, at the appropriate time during floor debate, to substitute the bill for the report. A majority vote is required, however, for the motion to proceed. And such a motion is usually made only when neither report of a divided report has been accepted. LD 114 was referrred to the Health and Human Services Commitee on May 5. News of the bill spread quckily on the Internet, and RV enthusiasts began contacting Maine legislators and tourism officials to express their opinions regarding the bill. Evidently, the reaction from the RV community led the bill's sponsor, Rep. Anne Perry, to withdraw her support.

Motorhome travelers have uploaded wonderful images to FMCA.com's Community photo album. Unfortunately, many posters have not included photo captions, so I'm left wanting to know more about the image(s). Here's how you can add descriptive captions to your images: When uploading images, in the "Caption" field, type a short title of the image. This is not a full caption, but just a short title for your image. Here's the important part: Type the full photo caption, or image description, in the large, white text block (below the caption line and toolbars). Scroll down and click the "Post Image" button to post your image with caption. Repeat process for additional photos. If you have already uploaded images to an album, or if you have chosen to "bulk upload" your images, you can go back in and add titles/captions. Here's how: Go to your album and click the blue "Options" button (to the right of your uploaded image), and select "Edit Image from the drop-down menu. Next to "Caption," type a short title of the image, or leave the one you have. This is not a full caption, but just a short title for your image. Type the photo caption, or image description, in the large, white text block (below the caption line and toolbars). Scroll down and click the "Post Image" button to save your changes. Repeat process for additional photos. That's all there is to it. Now, you and other motorhome enthusiasts will enjoy a better photo sharing experience.

A bill in the Maine State Legislature, LD 114, would make it a civil offense to park an RV overnight on any public parking lot in the state. View the bill text. Rep. Anne Perry - RepAnne.Perry@legislature.maine.gov - is the bill's sponsor. To contact other Maine legislators, go to the Maine State Legislature Web site, http://janus.state.me.us/legis/. Also, consider contacting the following to voice your opinion of this pending bill: Governor John E. Baldacci Office of the Governor #1 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333-0001 Phone 207-287-3531 Fax 207-287-1034 http://www.maine.gov/governor/baldacci/con...hare_views.html. Maine office of tourism: 1-888-624-6345 www.visitmaine.com/contact.php Maine Tourism Association Phone: (207) 623-0363 Fax: (207) 623-0388 mtainfo@mainetourism.com www.mainetourism.com Convention & Visitors Bureau of Greater Portland 207-772-5800 info@visitportland.com www.visitportland.com

FMCA recently received the following e-mail from Lawrence R. Babb, of South Carolina, concerning drivers license requirements. I am sending you this email to share my concern that a number of FMCA members may be operating their motorhomes illegally – they wrongfully assume their normal auto drivers licenses are adequate for motorhome use. Reference is made to the article Texas Drivers License Requirements in the April 2009 issue of Family Motor Coaching magazine. I think FMCA would provide members a great service if that article were expanded to cover the license requirements for all states, for reasons shown below. I have been an FMCA member for five years. During that time I have driven my motorhome 60,000 miles through 46 states and eight Canadian provinces. I just discovered that all that travel was done using an unauthorized class of driver’s license – a normal auto class driver’s license (Class D). I only learned of my license shortfall while recently perusing another website – a fellow South Carolinian was complaining about the test that he had taken to obtain his license. Similar to Texas, South Carolina law requires that vehicle operators driving vehicles whose GVWR rating exceeds 26,000 pounds (includes most diesel rigs) to possess either a class E or class F (noncommercial heavy truck) operators license. The class F license is required to tow another vehicle (toad) behind a motorhome whose GVWR exceeds 26,000 pounds. According to information received from the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, I can expect at least two unpleasant results if I gain the attention of the authorities while driving my motorhome using my auto drivers license: - The annoyance of receiving a traffic violation ticket from law enforcement officials. - Denial of coverage/responsibility by my insurance company if I become involved in an accident. My insurance company can be expected to deny coverage on the basis that I was an unlicensed driver. I was not licensed by my state to operate the class of vehicle I was driving. Loss of insurance coverage could result in total financial disaster. I did a very quick Internet survey of neighboring state motor vehicle departments to ascertain what their requirements were. I found that NC has similar requirements as SC (and TX). VA, GA, and FL do not appear to have any such requirements. I also shocked my neighbor just before he left on a motor home trip – he had no idea that South Carolina requires him to have a class F license. In summary, I think it is possible that dozens of FMCA members may be blissfully operating their motorhomes without having the necessary operators licenses. If even one member loses insurance coverage in an accident because of having an improper operator’s license, that is one too many. None of us need unexpected financial disasters. Sincerely Lawrence R. Babb F342790