TAKE ACTION!

Congress Must Act Quickly
Before Costly, Unneeded, and Complex Permits Hit
Recreational Boaters Nationwide

The New Year has brought something closer to reality for the nation's boaters: starting in September, for the first time in U.S. history, 73 million boaters will be required to have a national permit to enjoy their right to boat. This will seriously impact boating participation and the $40 billion U.S. boating industry unless Congress acts quickly to avert this unneeded requirement.

This is because of a 2006 federal court ruling on commercial ship ballast water that will also require national permits for the 18 million recreational boats in the U.S. by September, 2008-despite the fact that 99% of recreational boats do not have ballast tanks. These costly permits-intended for commercial ships and supertankers that have brought harmful invasive water species into U.S. waters-are currently being developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to tax boat engine cooling water and deck runoff.

Recreational boats are already well regulated by existing laws and stringent U.S. Coast Guard regulations, and the water-based runoffs that will be permitted by the EPA have been deemed non-pollutants essential to the safe and normal operation of a boat. NMMA is rallying public support to pass legislation currently before Congress, the Recreational Boating Act of 2007 (H.R. 2550 and S. 2067), to stop recreational boat permitting.

Support for the Recreational Boating Act is growing in Congress, with 70 cosponsors for the House bill sponsored by Reps. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) and Candice Miller (R-Mich.); and 11 cosponsors for the Senate bill sponsored by Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.). September 2007 also saw two Senate leaders, Sens. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), speak out publicly on the issue and their views on why boaters should not be permitted.

But, with eight months to go before the court ordered deadline, time is running out for Congress to act. NMMA is hopeful the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will take action soon to address the issue.

Note: U.S. Senator Inhofe of Oklahoma is the Ranking Member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

You can visit www.BoatBlue.org to learn more about this important issue and to send a message to Congress to pass responsible, common-sense legislation to stop unnecessary national boat permitting.