Legislative Alert: Invasives and Boating

Dear Friend of Maine's Lakes,

We are reaching out on this snow day to ask for written testimony for two more lake bills that will be before committees next week.

We know we are sending this out on top of yesterday's request for testimony in support of LD 296, an important lake funding bill, but the nature of the legislative session is you never know when your priority bills are going to get on the schedule.

So bear with us and keep up your advocacy energy! Committees need to hear from you on these bills!

SUPPORT LD 171: An Act to Enhance Protections Regarding Invasive Aquatic Plant Infestations in Inland Waters of the State

PRIORITY ACTION: SUBMIT WRITTEN TESTIMONY

Public Hearing: Before the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee

When and Where: Wednesday, Feb. 12th at 1:00 p.m., Cross Office Building, Room 206

Maine Lakes Position: SUPPORT

This bill helps reduce the risk of the spread of invasive aquatic plants by focusing on key management actions on infested lakes. Specifically this bill will:

Strengthen watercraft inspection protocols. Recognizing that boats coming out of heavily infested waters pose a greater risk of invasive spread than those coming out of other waters, the bill asks the commissioners of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Department of Environmental Protection to assess if current protocols are adequate for these waterbodies, and to develop guidelines for stronger protocols where needed.

Review policies and procedures for surface use restrictions. Boats passing through areas with invasive infestations are more likely to pick up plant fragments and transport those fragments to new lakes. Surface use restrictions in areas of the worst infestations are a common-sense tool that can reduce that spread, but different agencies apply different standards to setting surface use restrictions. Getting commissioners to discuss ways that surface use restrictions can better protect lakes from invasive species spread is an important step to implementing consistency with this important management tool.

To read Maine Lakes Draft Testimony, click HERE.

For links to bill language and other resources, click HERE.

OPPOSE LD 173: An Act to Exempt Certain Watercraft from Registration Requirements

ACTION: SUBMIT WRITTEN TESTIMONY TO OPPOSE

Public Hearing: Before the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee

When and Where: Monday, February 10th at 1:00 in Cross Office Building, Room 206

Maine Lakes Position: OPPOSE

This bill exempts canoes, kayaks, and rowboats with up to 100 HP motors from boat registration requirements. While initially this may seem like a benign exemption, we have grave concerns about the potential impacts to Maine’s lakes:

Loss of revenue that supports important lake protection programs: With no clear definition of a “rowboat”, and with the horse power limit set so high, many larger boats could be equipped with oarlocks and consider themselves a “rowboat”, even though they exclusively use a motor. This bill opens the door for many types of boats, perhaps the majority of boats in Maine, to be exempt from registration fees. The loss of revenue would have a serious impact on the department’s capacity for lake protection work. The Department would not only lose registration fees but also additional revenue from the Coast Guard that comes with every registered boat.

Loss of revenue from the Lake and River Protection Sticker program: Even though we understand the registration exemption would still require boat owners to purchase a Lake and River Protection Sticker, in reality there will be no incentive or intuitive avenue for that to happen. Other boats exempted from registration (races, regattas, and water ski exhibitions) are all part of organized events that have oversight and mechanisms to distribute Lake and River Protection Stickers to participants. Exempting individual boaters who are not part of an organized group leaves them very likely to skip the purchase of a Sticker, resulting in decreased revenue for the vital invasive species work of both the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Department of Environmental Protection.

To read Maine Lakes Draft Testimony, click HERE.

For links to bill language and other resources, click HERE.

TAKE ACTION:SUBMIT WRITTEN TESTIMONY

Submit Written Testimony

Click the button above to submit written testimony. You'll need the date and time of the hearing as well as the LD number.

Written testimony does not have to be lengthy or overly detailed. Be clear how you would like the committee to vote (support or oppose) at the very beginning. Focus on your own experiences, why you want a bill to pass (or not), how it affects you, your volunteer work, or your community. Share any experiences with invasive species management that may affected (positively or negatively) by these bills. Your testimony can be as simple as you value lakes and want to see the state do all it can to reduce risks of invasive species spread. See Maine Lakes' drafts as a sample, but note that your testimony will likely be much shorter, which is good...written testimony does not have to be long to be impactful!

For directions to submit written testimony online visit the Maine Lakes updated Take Action page HERE. Click the “Tips for Written Testimony” button for more details.

Click HERE to submit written testimony online.

If you do want to testify in person or via Zoom, check out our updated Take Action! page HERE. Click the “Tips for Spoken Testimony” button for more details. Click HERE for a link to register to testify by Zoom.