Maryland Gov. Martin O?Malley signed legislation April 24 that will exempt coin dealers from the requirement to obtain a Maryland trader?s license for the American Numismatic Association?s Baltimore convention July 30-Aug. 3.
Whitman Publishing, the ANA and the Industry Council for Tangible Assets worked together to successfully lobby to change Maryland?s trader?s license law. The resulting legislation removes burdens that numismatic dealers would have otherwise faced this year if they had participated in more than three coin shows in Maryland within a 365-day period.
With four major coin shows planned in Baltimore this year (three Whitman Baltimore Coin and Collectibles Conventions plus the ANA convention) dealers would have had to apply for a state trader?s license that would have created ongoing regulatory and taxation burdens. With the new legislation, that requirement now excludes the 2008 World?s Fair of Money since it is promoted by the ANA, a non-profit national organization.
?This is a landmark effort on behalf of the hobby and will greatly benefit dealers and collectors at this year?s World?s Fair of Money as well as at Whitman shows,? said Barry Stuppler, ANA president. ?I think this speaks volumes about what the numismatic community can accomplish when we work together.?
In its letters to Maryland legislators, Whitman Publishing noted that its Baltimore Coin and Currency Conventions attract tens of thousands of visitors to the city, with an estimated economic impact of more than $10 million, and that the ANA convention is anticipated to generate another $14 million to $15 million.
