NEWS From BoatU.S.
Boat Owners Association of The United States
880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304
BoatU.S. News Room at http://www.BoatUS.com/news/releases.asp

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Scott Croft, 703-461-2864,
Date: March 9, 2006

SURVEY REVEALS GREAT DISTASTE FOR PRESIDENTIAL TAX PANEL'S
PROPOSAL TO END SECOND HOME MORTGAGE INTEREST DEDUCTION

It should come as no surprise that most Americans are skeptical when
the government says it would like "to fix" the tax code. Such was the
case recently as 75 percent of those responding to a BoatU.S. online
survey said they were opposed to a proposal by the President's Advisory
Panel on Tax Reform to end the mortgage interest deduction for all
second homes, which includes boats that have sleeping quarters, cooking
and toilet facilities.

Fully 55 percent of those responding said that elimination of the
deduction would cause them not to buy a boat they would otherwise
purchase. Another 51 percent said they would not buy a boat if the
deduction for interest on home equity loans was eliminated.

"The survey results should be a wake-up call for the boating industry,"
said Michael Sciulla, senior vice president of BoatU.S. government and
public affairs.

"Like the federal luxury tax of the early 1990's, the elimination of
the mortgage interest deduction for boats will cripple an industry that
is already facing serious challenges that include an increasing loss of
access to the water, high fuel prices, and stagnant growth," he noted.

The tax reform panel released its report last October. Treasury
Secretary John Snow was supposed to review the report and make
recommendations to President Bush by the end of 2005 so that the
President could present them to Congress.

In a speech earlier this week at Stanford University, Snow said the
Bush administration wants to forge ahead with a major revamping of the
tax code, but that no timetable had been established.

BoatU.S. - Boat Owners Association of The United States - is the
nation's leading advocate for recreational boaters providing its
640,000 members with a wide array of consumer services. For more
information about BoatU.S., visit http://www.BoatUS.com