Why must automobile registrations be renewed?
Automobile registrations create a mandatory contact point at which you have to go and see someone to complete the requirement. Usually this is just a financial transaction, but it is not only that. For example, if a new emissions policy were introduced, it would create an interaction to instruct you face-to-face and optionally check for compliance (via receipt from a service ctr). Also, it’s important to at least minimally validate that a particular person is attached to a particular car. There are likely also security reasons as well – forcing a minimum level of interaction with state mechanisms keeps people honest, or so it would seem that people think.
In Connecticut, vehicles are taxed at property tax rates, like houses, and that money goes to the local government. To this end, the town tax assessor gets a “Grand List” every year from the DMV that lists all the cars that are registered in that town. Yearly registrations keep the list correct and current.
