Heads up Maine Boaters

[Roger Long]

If you live or cruise in Maine, better take notice of bill LD 164 now working its way through the legislature in stealth mode. It will require life jackets to be worn at all times with $100 - $500 fines and the third violation in a 5 year period being a Class E crime.

Wearing PFD's all the time is obviously a good idea but this is one of those states that let's people drive motorcycles without helmets which everyone of us pays a significant amount of money for in the form of higher insurance rates and health care costs. According to the bill, tour boats will be able to go by with deckloads full of landlubbers wearing no more flotation than a tee shirt but we'll be at risk of boarding by the Marine Patrol and paying fines sitting inside our lifelines on the same calm, hot day.

The bill is currently weird. As written, you will be able to row naked out to your mooring in your little dinghy but will be in violation at the dock as soon as the engine is started if you haven't put PFD's on everyone first.

Update 2/17/09: The bill was withdrawn from consideration.

 

[Ross]

Makes you wonder who dreams this stuff up and what they are smoking when they do.

 

[Stu Jackson]

If they were

smoking something (good) they wouldn't bother with this kinda BS!

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

I didn't read the entire bill but it sounds as thought this requirement is applicable only to certain sized boats and only in limited areas?? I may have missed the broader requirement to which you refer:




An Act To Save Lives on Maine Waters​

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §13068-A, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 655, Pt. B, §380 and affected by §422 and amended by c. 689, Pt. B, §6, is further amended to read: 4. Operating watercraft without proper safety equipment. Except as provided in paragraph B, a person may not operate or be a passenger in a watercraft without proper safety equipment as described in paragraph A. A. A person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft without proper safety equipment if the person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft and: (1) Fails to comply with the same requirements pertaining to lights, life-saving devices, fire extinguishers and other safety equipment as required by federal laws and regulations on federal navigable waters, as promulgated under the Federal Boat Safety Act of 1971, Public Law 92-75, as amended;

(2) Fails to comply with requirements pertaining to additional equipment not in conflict with federal navigation laws, which the commissioner may prescribe if there is a demonstrated need; or

(3) Fails to wear a Coast Guard approved Type I, Type II or Type III personal flotation device while canoeing or kayaking on the Saco River between Hiram Dam and the Atlantic Ocean between January 1st and June 1st; or operating or being a passenger in a watercraft.

(4) Fails to wear a Coast Guard approved Type I, Type II, Type III or Type V personal flotation device while operating a watercraft on:
(a) The Penobscot River, between the gorge and the head of Big Eddy; or

(b) The Kennebec River, between Harris Station and Turtle Island, at the foot of Black Brook Rapids.

 

[kloudie1]

Here is the Louisiana law concerning PFD's. Not too bad but ya have to remember to wear the inflatible when you go into the dink. Class A is less than 16 feet. The rules here aren't abusive.

Any vessel 16 feet in length and longer, must have a Coast
Guard approved type I - II or III for each person on board,
including skiers, plus one type IV throwable device.

All PFD's shall be serviceable, readily accessable, if not worn on
the person, and properly sized.

PFD's and CHILDREN - Children 12 or younger must wear a
properly sized and fitted PFD when the boat is underway on all vessels less than 26 feet in length. Smaller children should have a PFD that has ample upper body flotation and a crotch strap, proper fitting is critical.
All persons onboard a Class A motorboat which is being propelled by a hand tiller outboard motor shall be required to wear a USCG approved Type I, II, III, or V personal flotation device while the motorboat is underway. A handtiller outboard is described as an outboard motor that has a tiller or steering arm attached to the outboard motor to facilitate steering and does not have any mechanical assist device which is rigidly attached to the boat and used in steering the vessel, including but not limited to mechanical, hydraulic, or electronic control systems. Hand tiller outboard motor shall not mean any type of electronic trolling motor.

 

[Roger Long]

it sounds as thought this requirement is applicable only to certain sized boats and only in limited areas??

The version that was circulated to Maine Harbormasters had the specific area wording crossed out and replaced with something like "when aboard a boat".

There is still some uncertainty about whether this will apply to salt water as it's currently going through Inland Fish and Wildlife. The uncertainty is probably due to the fact that nothing has appeared in the press about this and it seems like they are trying to slide it through quietly so as not to create the kind of bruha that arose when they tried to get the bikers to put their brains in buckets.

 

[gettinthere]

even while anchored? while sleeping? when jumping from the boat to go swimming?


who voted the nannies into office? you get the gov't you voted for

 

[Rick D]

I hope you guys have a state boaters lobby! That stuff has a tendency to bleed out to other states (we on the left coast ought to know...

 

[Tim R.]

even while anchored? while sleeping? when jumping from the boat to go swimming?


who voted the nannies into office? you get the gov't you voted for

Not true. I didn't get who I voted for and our republican senators are not who they are supposed to be. I was counting on them holding out on this whole economic stimulus but they caved to special interests like all the rest of the criminals in Washington!

I cannot believe they are so short sighted to not see what effect it will have on the economy raising taxes 5 years from now to pay to supposedly fix the economy now. And they even manged to use earmarks without calling them earmarks any more. Do they really think we are that stupid!

I am going to bed now.

 

[Maine Sail]

I am going to bed now.

Don't forget to wear your helmet you could fall out of bed... Sh&t I shouldn't give them any more ideas...

 

[RichH]

Too damn bad that the citizens of the USA dont have the gonads that our forefathers had in 1776.
The USA it seems once was a nation of laws and is now a nation strangled by laws.

 

[LloydB]

Where is paragraph B ?

I always miss the gotcha parts of any of the rules. Where does it say wear the device when the motor is on ? I enjoy these discussions but it bugs me when they start out like a treasure hunt crossword puzzle. BTW what other states besides LA & CA. will be affected?

A. A person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft without proper safety equipment if the person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft and: (1) Fails to comply with the same requirements pertaining to lights, life-saving devices, fire extinguishers and other safety equipment as required by federal laws and regulations on federal navigable waters, as promulgated under the Federal Boat Safety Act of 1971, Public Law 92-75, as amended;

it does appear They are concerned for the recovery of early spring canoeist even though their paragraph structure could be better.

 

[Jim Kolstoe]

Are you sure that the quoted text is accurate? If so, it would appear to parse out as defining operating a watercraft without proper safety equipment as follows: A person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft without proper safety equipment "if the person operates or is a passenger in a watercraft and: (3) . . . .; or operating or being a passenger in a watercraft." In otherwords, if you are in the boat, you are operating without proper safety equipment. This conclusion is driven by the fact that the semi-colon separates the text "or operating or being a passenger in a watercraft" from the "fails to wear . . . " language at the beginning of sub-paragraph (3), making them separate items in the listing.
I admit to having met some people I thought generally careless, maybe even reckless, but thats going too far.
At the risk of being impertinent, I suggest that you return your legislature to grade school to learn how to write, and replace them with folks whose acquaintenceship with "common sense" extends beyond reading the dictionary definition.
Jim Kolstoe, h23 Kara's Boo

 

[Chuck Creel]

Too damn bad that the citizens of the USA dont have the gonads that our forefathers had in 1776.
The USA it seems once was a nation of laws and is now a nation strangled by laws.

Well I do recall a midwesstern state haveing called to arms by its poeple.

I also recall CNN quote of gun and ammunition sales incfreasing by 40 % after inaugeration.


HMMM lemme think about this one, so i went to get some ammo for my 9MM.

They had only 2 " two boxes left on the shelf at academy .

HMMMM

 

[Chuck Creel]

laws

Too damn bad that the citizens of the USA dont have the gonads that our forefathers had in 1776.
The USA it seems once was a nation of laws and is now a nation strangled by laws.

Anyone remember this?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4069761537893819675&p

 

[rpwillia]

Sitting here near DC in Northern Virginia we took note about how you senators bragged about saving the country $30B and ignoring the fact they just wasted $800B. Time for a re-vote or just accept "Obama the Socialist" is going to rule forever.

 

[soulesailor]

If the IF&W is involved you can be sure logic is not. They were real life jacket nazis to all us raft guides until they finally got their wish and made it a law all guides had to wear life jackets with at least 22lbs of flotation. We all had to buy new high-floats and self rescue with the damn things up around our ears. Big help that was.

I got in an absurd argument with an IF&W warden about my jacket one sunny day:

W: your life jacket is illegal
Me: why?
W: because it's not contrasting in color to your guests' jackets
Me: they'res are orange and blue and mine is fire engine red
W: it's not contrasting enough
Me: not contrasting enough?
W: I want to be able to tell who the guide is
Me: I'm the one in the back
W: if I fall in I want to be able to look at the raft and know who the guide is
Me: I'd be surprised if you even knew where to look for the raft itself
W: still...
Me: I'll be the one throwing you a throw rope...

etc. etc. until they finally went rafting, with the worst company on the river. Of course they flipped right off the bat and then held an emergency meeting in Greenville to discuss closing Ripogenus Gorge to all commercial rafting. Right on the ball those guys. Lord save us!

 

[dvideohd]

so do you have to wear your life jacket in Maine... When sleeping?? changing underwear?? engaging in certain athletic activities? using the Potty? sure looks to be the case...

 

[Boompa]

Maine is just the beginning!

The New England Fisheries council is made up of bozo's according to the length of coastline. Because Maine has the biggest coastline, the decisions they make affect me in Massachusetts. For instance, I'd been diving for lobster for about 30 years. Its a lot of work and sometimes I do pretty well, sometimes I get skunked. Its well known that Maine and its Commercial Lobsterman's Lobby is anti diving. Because of the old school mentality and the controversial regulations regarding big lobster also being big producers[these biggies eat other lobster and when they get huge, have a hard time finding compatible mates] I can not legally take lobster with a bigger than 5" carapice. [over 5 lb ave.] So its likely that when this revenue enhancement [thats for our own good] goes through we and some other states will get hammered. I am sorry for the sour grapes.... :bang: